Quest for the Shikon Jewel
by TouchofPixieDust
Summary: A group of young warriors take on Naraku on a quest for the Shikon jewel. Can their friendship survive the quest? Will they? AU
1. Kagome is Dead

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter One: Kagome is Dead

"No!" screamed Sango.

"I'm sorry, Sango," Miroku said, "But it's true. Kagome is dead."

Inuyasha howled. "Noooooo!"

"She just wasn't strong enough, Inuyasha. She wasn't ready. You knew that when you decided to challenge the demons."

"Are you saying this is MY fault, MONK?" He growled viciously, ready to rip into his long time friend. "Are you saying it is MY fault Kagome is dead?"

Miroku sighed. "Don't forget Shippo and Koga. too."

"We can live without those two morons, but we NEED Kagome to defeat Naraku." Inuyasha glared. _How could Kagome go and get herself killed like that? Stupid girl. Why did she insist on protecting us with that barrier? It left her too weak to defend herself against that panther demon._

"That's rather cold, Inuyasha."

"It is true though, Sango. We need her protective barriers and her ability to heal to make it through this. And she was finally getting the hang of shooting her stupid arrows. Without her we will never make it. Although it certainly would not hurt if Inuyasha would exercise a little tact now and then."

"What do you suggest we do, monk?"

"Do? Sango, we will do the only thing we can do." Miroku sighed, trying to rub the headache away.

Inuyasha yelled, "Don't say it, monk! Don't you dare! We are NOT quitters!"

Ignoring the hanyou, Miroku said, "We escape."


	2. Apologies for Death

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Two: Apologies for Death

"I'm sorry, guys. I didn't mean to die on you. If I wasn't so weak you wouldn't have had to stop the quest. Shippo and Koga would still be alive. So would I."

_DogDemon01: No use blubbering about it._

_Houshi4Hentai: True._

_DemonSlayer18: We'll start at the last save point tomorrow._

_Houshi4Hentai: Perhaps this time we should wander around a bit before tackling the demon horde._

_MikoMaiden: It will give me a chance to get stronger. _

_FoxFyre: Me too. I'm close to learning another spell!_

_BigBadWolf: I can't believe you guys just left me there to die!_

_DogDemon01: That's what happens when the weak fall in battle. Keep up next time and maybe you won't be left behind._

Kagome glared at the screen. She typed, deleted, and retyped her angry sentences. He wasn't talking about her, he was talking about Koga. Or was he? After all, when she fell in battle they didn't just leave her… they simply quit the game. But why? She was the newest to the game, and wasn't half as strong as the others.

With a sigh she erased her angry words.

DogDemon01: You sure are being quiet, Kags.

_MikoMaiden: It's Kagome, not Kags, idiot._

_DogDemon01: I'm not an idiot, stupid!_

_FoxFyre: I'm putting you both on ignore if you don't stop fighting._

_DemonSlayer18: So, are we going to start again tomorrow after school?_

_Houshi4Hentai: Count me in._

_FoxFyre: Me 2._

_MikoMaiden: I have detention, but I'll be online as soon as I get home._

_BigBadWolf: If Kagome's here, I'll be here._

_DogDemon01: What's THAT supposed to mean?_

Kagome groaned, barely keeping from banging her head on her desk. It seemed like all Inuyasha and Koga did was fight. The tiniest little thing could set them off.

_DemonSlayer18: Detention?_

Kagome winced. She hadn't meant to type that. Of course Sango would have caught it. The girl was astute.

_MikoMaiden: Yeah, but it totally wasn't my fault._

_DogDemon01: Suuuure it wasn't. The Good Girl finally gets busted. What did ya do? Skip class? Forget your homework? Didn't polish the apple?_

_Houshi4Hentai: Got caught making out in the principals office?_

_MikoMaiden: NO! Get your mind out of the gutter, Miroku. And I'm not an apple polisher!_

_DemonSlayer18: What happened then? _

_BigBadWolf: You can tell us. We'll still love you. At least, I will._

Kagome was soooo tempted to put Koga on ignore. Once he started in on the love train of thought it was hard to get him derailed. Her fingers hovered over the ignore option, but before she could click on it she heard a ding. Someone was IM-ing her.

_IM: DogDemon01: Are you sure you don't know Koga? He sure seems to know you._

_IM: MikoMaiden: I don't think I do. _

_IM: DogDemon01: Maybe he's goes to your school and is stalking you._

Kagome laughed at the thought. The only stalker she had at school was the local sweet heartthrob Hojo. She pictured him as Koga, the wolf demon, and burst out laughing hysterically. She wiped a tear from her eye and sighed as the laughter died when another ding caught her attention.

_IM: DogDemon01: You still there?_

_IM: MikoMaiden: Yes, was picturing him as this guy I know from school and started laughing._

_IM: DogDemon01: Boyfriend?_

Another ding. This time it was Sango trying to get her attention.

IM: DemonSlayer18: Not paying attention to the chat I see. I bet you are chatting with Inuyasha. Don't let Koga know, he'd kill him every opportunity he had!

Quickly Kagome said goodnight to her online friends and exited Miroku's chatroom where they always met after the game. Before she closed down her computer she heard another ding. It was Inuyasha again.

_IM: DogDemon01: Leaving?_

_IM: MikoMaiden: Yeah, I still have homework to do before school tomorrow._

_IM: MikoMaiden: I'm sorry I died again. I'll work harder._

_IM: DogDemon01: Stop worrying about it._

Kagome smiled.

_IM: MikoMaiden: Sweet dreams, Inuyasha._

_IM: DogDemon01: Sweet dreams, Kagome._


	3. An Invitation You Can’t Refuse

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Three: An Invitation You Can't Refuse

Beep…. Beep…. Beep… Bee…

Inuyasha ripped the alarm clock off of his nightstand and threw it across the room. With a groan he kicked off the covers.

_There has to be a better way to wake up._

After a stretch and a yawn he turned on his computer. As usual, Kagome had left him an offline message. Well, an offline smile at any rate. He wished that he knew what she looked like. After all, he knew what Miroku, Shippo, and Koga looked like. Those three weren't shy about putting their pictures on their profiles. Miroku DEFINITELY wasn't shy about his. Inuyasha was a little surprised that the adult content filters hadn't caught that one yet.

Neither Sango nor Kagome put their pictures on their profiles. Sango had a picture of a cat on hers, and Kagome had a picture from her favorite anime. The boys had wondered if the girls really WERE girls. That had been a very disturbing conversation. And the girls hadn't been very adamant about denying it either. In fact, they seemed to get a sadistic pleasure out of being intentionally vague.

Inuyasha yawned and headed for the bathroom.

_Nah, Kagome is a girl. I know it. _

After brushing his teeth and doing his morning business, Inuyasha threw on the cleanest clothes from his hamper and darted down the stairs. He grabbed the toast his mother was buttering and ran out the door.

His first two classes went by unnoticed. It's no wonder he ended up with detention. Which, of course, made him think about Kagome. _What in the world would SHE have been given detention for?_

Lunch was miserable as usual. He quickly ate the Ramen he brought then headed for the library. If he was lucky Kagome would be online too. Chatting with her during lunch was his favorite part of the day. Their conversation the night before had been interrupted, probably by Sango, and he really wanted to continue it.

Turned out it wasn't Inuyasha's lucky day after all. The only one of his gamer friends who was online was Koga.

_BigBadWolf: You just missed Kagome._

_DogDemon01: Like I care._

_BigBadWolf: You're just jealous that I claimed her first._

_DogDemon01: You can't claim her, you moron. She's not yours._

_BigBadWolf: She will be._

Inuyasha was too ticked off at Koga to even bother answering him, he just kicked the power cord out of the socket. Granted, he could have just clicked on the little X to exit the window, or even close down the Internet connection, but being Inuyasha, he just had to turn off the power to the whole stupid thing. That, naturally, led to a scolding by the librarian on how to appropriately treat school equipment.

During detention he doodled pictures of a dog tearing apart a wolf. He even used his red pen to add a nice touch of splattering blood. All in all he was quite satisfied with his work of art.

The walk home was about the usual. The good thing about detention was that most of the other students have already left for the day and weren't hanging around being annoying. The less people he had to deal with the better.

"Mom! I'm home!" Inuyasha yelled as he walked into the kitchen.

There was a mumbled reply coming from the backroom over the sound of a vacuum. Inuyasha grabbed a soda and a sandwich from the refrigerator. As he was about to head back upstairs a manila envelope on the table caught his attention.

It had his name on the front.

Stuffing the sandwich into his mouth, Inuyasha ripped open the envelope and starting reading aloud.

"Dear Inuyasha Taisho: Congratulations, you have been selected to participate in a new gaming experience."

He continued to read as he went up the stairs to his bedroom.

"You and five other gamers have been chosen to be the first to sample the newest form of gaming. The Virtual RPG."

Inuyasha turned on his computer and quickly went to Miroku's chatroom. Everyone but Kagome was already there. And from the looks of the conversation, they had received the same letter that he did.

_DogDemon01: I got a letter like that._

_DemonSlayer18: That is too weird. It can't be a coincidence._

_Houshi4Hentai: Maybe someone noticed our group always plays together._

_DemonSlayer18: But why us?_

_FoxFyre: Because we're good?_

_MikoMaiden joined the room_

_DemonSlayer18: lol_

_Houshi4Hentai: lol_

_BigBadWolf: lol_

_MikoMaiden: Looks like I just missed something funny. What's up?_

_DogDemon01: Did you get an invitation in the mail today?_

_MikoMaiden: I don't know, I'll go check. Brb._

Inuyasha barely registered the rest of the conversation as he waited for Kagome to come back. He was just as wary and suspicious as Sango was. They weren't the best group of gamers out there. There were others who played better, and had played together longer. Why was their group singled out? It gave him an itchy feeling.

_MikoMaiden: I'm back!_

_BigBadWolf: wb_

_DemonSlayer18: wb_

_FoxFyre: Kagome, tell them to stop picking on me!_

_MikoMaiden: Stop picking on Shippo._

_DogDemon01: Did you get an invitation too?_

_MikoMaiden: Yes._

The group was silent. Every last one of them received an invitation. They were invited to test a new virtual reality role playing game. It was an all expense paid vacation to Tokyo, Japan.


	4. At First Glance

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Four: At First Glance

Kagome nervously stepped off of the plane. _This is really happening._ She would have thought that finally graduating would have been the highlight of her year, but it was strangely overshadowed by the meeting that was about to take place.

As soon as she stepped into the lobby of the airport she headed for the bathroom. Flying across the ocean hadn't exactly done wonders for her hair… or smell for that matter. Quickly she rubbed a damp cloth over her arms and legs, glad she was wearing a sundress. Satisfied with her impromptu bath (her mother calls them spit baths), she turned her attention to her reflection. _Ug. _After digging through her purse she thanked the stars above that she found her perfume, lip gloss, and a comb.

Five minutes later she came out of the ladies room feeling much better and ALMOST ready to face her friends. Nervous butterflies had her racing back to the bathroom to empty her stomach of airline food.

Ten minutes later she came out of the ladies room feeling… well, a little icky, but not quite so nervous.

On her way to retrieve her luggage she spotted a small group of people standing awkwardly together. She recognized the two males facing her direction, Miroku and the red haired Shippo. The other two boys she assumed were Inuyasha and Koga. She couldn't stop the grin spreading across her face. Her eyes met with the young woman's who was with them. It HAD to be Sango.

Kagome put her finger to her lips, suddenly feeling giddy and playful. She sent Sango a wink and strolled casually around the corner. She could overhear part of the conversation.

"Well, now we know that Sango is a girl. Anyone want to take bets on if Kagome is?"

"Of course she is!"

"I don't know about that…." Kagome smirked, that one came from Sango. She would bet that the first voice was Miroku, it sounded like something he would say. "Anyone can create a whole new personality online after all. Kagome's favorite movies are all action flicks, gets detention for punching guys, likes skateboarding, and couldn't boil a pot of water! Does that sound like a girl to you?"

"Punching a guy? She didn't tell me about that!"

"She told us about detention." That voice was younger than the rest, it must be Shippo.

"Yeah, but not about why. How did you find out Sango?"

Kagome tried not to giggle. After taking a deep breath she tried to make her voice as low and masculine as she possible could. "Hey guys! You're all here."

She heard a few curses, a feminine giggle, and one loud wailing sound. Then she stepped from behind her hiding place, smiled at them, and waved.

"Gotcha!"

That was the last word she said before she got the breath knocked out of her. Sango had her in a bone-crushing hug.

"Air… need… air…"

"Whoops!" Sango let her loose, only to be glomped on by the younger redhead.

One of the other young men, either Inuyasha or Koga, moved to hug Kagome as well, only to be blocked by the other. Miroku took the opportunity to give her a hug of his own.

"Welcome Kagome! I am Miroku. It is so good to finally meet you in person. You are as lovely as I pictured." He wrapped his arms around her for a hug.

"Nice to meet you too…. Uh… Miroku?"

"Hmmm…?"

"Is that your hand?"

Before Kagome had a chance to slap the man with the wandering hand he fell to the ground twin lumps on his head. Sango and one of the handsome young men were behind him glaring daggers.

"I warned you not to touch her, you pervert!"

Kagome smiled.

"Inuyasha?"

His frown disappeared as he gave her a smile. "Nice to finally meet you."

Kagome launched herself at her friend and gave him a hug with a squeal. It was difficult restraining herself from planting a kiss on his cheek. After he got over his shock, he hugged her back.

Once Inuyasha let her go she was turned to face the young man left. Koga. He grabbed her hands and held them to his chest.

"Kagome! You are even more beautiful than I imagined. I have longed for this day."

"Uh… thanks, Koga. It's nice to meet you, too."

"Well," Sango clapped her hands together, "I've been in this airport for hours now. How about we get your luggage and find our ride?"

It didn't take long to get the luggage. It did take a little bit more time finding their ride. Of course, the fact that they were having too much fun exploring and talking had little to do with their lack of success.

While Kagome, Shippo, and Sango were in the candy store picking out chocolates, Koga and Inuyasha were fighting over who should lead them out of there, and Miroku was flirting with every pretty girl who walked near him. Before another fist fight broke out, a tall beautiful, yet perturbed looking woman walked up to them.

"Are you the kids for the video game?"

"Yes," said Kagome, who was feeling a bit intimidated by the older woman.

"My name is Kagura. You were supposed to meet me down by the passenger loading area TWO hours ago!"

Kagome apologized and tried to explain, but Kagura wasn't listening. Finally she stopped talking and followed behind meekly as the woman stormed down the walkway. She was surprised when Inuyasha picked up her heaviest bag and secured it to his own.

"Thanks!"

"Keh." He blushed lightly. "I'm hungry!" he yelled to Kagura. "We better be stopping for some food soon!"


	5. Meeting Naraku

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Five: Meeting Naraku

Naraku stood across the room from them. Inuyasha's instincts were to protect his friends from this man. Quickly he stepped in front, blocking Kagome from view.

"Greetings warriors," the longhaired man said as he extended his hand towards them in welcome. "We are pleased that you could join us. Are you ready to play?"

One by one the friends sat down in the chairs that Naraku motioned to.

"I am Naraku Onigumo. Thank you for coming to play my game. I will go over the rules and basic game play with you before you enter my world and begin your quest. But first I would like to know a little bit about each one of my players. Please tell me your name, age, a little bit about yourself, and what type of player you prefer to use.."

The room was quiet. Inuyasha had that itchy feeling again. He wondered if it was too late to change his mind.

"My name's Shippo Seriyo. I'm 14 and I'm a certified genius. I just graduated from high school and will be starting at Harvard this coming fall. I like to play as the fox demon, the illusionist. He's cool."

Inuyasha studied the kid. _ Too smart for his own good. Probably doesn't know how to relate to kids his own age. But the kid is energetic and optimistic… annoyingly so._ He tried to not dwell on how attached the kid seemed to be to Kagome already. He also refused to speculate on if she liked younger guys or not.

"I'm Koga Wolfe. I'm 24 and am working on my Bachelors degree in English. I prefer the wolf demon. Strong and fast. A good protector." He winked at Kagome.

_What a jerk,_ Inuyasha thought to himself. _And he's making Kagome feel uncomfortable. Wonder if we're allowed to kill off our own teammates early in the game…_

"Sango Chikara. I'm 19 and am starting my second year of college this fall. After I graduate I plan on applying for the police academy. I always play as the demon slayer. I like the variety of weapons and fighting techniques it allows me."

_Not a girl to mess with. I wonder why she didn't say she likes to be the slayer since it's one of the strongest female characters. Funny that even her last name means 'strength'. Doesn't look like she trusts Naraku either, I can tell. Smart girl._ Inuyasha watched as she scooted farther from Miroku as he scooted closer to her.

"I am Miroku Kinomoto. I am 22 and work at a fine entertainment establishment serving a wide variety of beverages to our patrons. I play the monk. It is a strong offensive and defensive character." He smiled at Sango.

_Translation_, Inuyasha smirked, _he's a bartender at a topless bar._

Inuyasha turned to Kagome as she nervously cleared her throat and fiddled with the hem on her skirt.

"Um… my name is Kagome Higurashi. I'm 17 and just graduated. High school, I mean. I'm just going to go to a local college part time… I'm sorta learning the family business… a shrine… Um… anyhow, I'm new to playing the game. I like being the miko though. I like that … she can heal people and… protect them... a little at least."

_She's way too nervous. She can't even look anyone in the eye._ Inuyasha froze when she suddenly lifted her eyes up and looked at him. He felt like she was asking him to save her, and suddenly he had the strongest urge to do just that.

"Inuyasha." He said abruptly, knowing that he sounded rude, but at least it took all eyes off of Kagome, who was beginning to look like she might bolt. "19, graduated this year, am the dog demon."

He glared at the group, as if daring them to say anything. He hated it when anyone mentioned how old he was when he graduated high school. It wasn't his fault his mother homeschooled him while they traveled around the world, following his father's jobs. His life was just fine, thank you very much, and it bugged him when anyone made snide comments about it.

Naraku gave the group a smile and folded his hands in his lap. Inuyasha thought he looked like one of those villains from old time movies. All he needed was a handlebar mustache to twirl around while cackling maniacly.

"It is good to meet you all. Congratulation on being selected for this exciting adventure in computer gaming. It will be an experience you will never forget."

_Now that sounds ominous._ Inuyasha was more skeptical than ever.

"The Quest for the Shikon Jewel is a virtual role playing game. You will become the character that you play. You will see everything they see. You will feel everything they feel. Essentially, you will become that character."

Kagome shyly raised her hand, blushing madly. "How is that possible?"

Naraku smiled at her. "Technology… and magic."

The group looked at each other questioningly. No one seemed sure if he was kidding or not. Sango and Miroku looked ready to get up and leave, Shippo looked ready to jump right in, Kagome looked like she was in the middle of a bad science fiction movie, and Koga looked like he was just waiting to swoop down on her. That last part may have been Inuyasha's imagination though…

"You have been selected to give the game a trial run. There are still a few glitches to work out. We will be monitoring your progress as you play. At this moment there are no save points, and once the game begins, you must see it through to the end."

Miroku gasped. "That could take days!"

"Or weeks." Naraku smiled. "Perhaps longer, perhaps shorter. It is up to how quickly you defeat your enemies and collect the Shikon Jewel."

"Um…" Kagome raised her hand again. "You said we couldn't stop, and that there are no save points… when are we supposed to sleep?"

"You sleep in the game. There are inns if you have the money, and the ground if you do not. I recommend that you find money. You will enjoy your meals more if you have money. Otherwise you will have to hunt for your food."

"What happens if we don't?" Sango asked.

"You will die."

The group was quiet.

"You mean our characters will die?" Inuyasha tried to clarify.

Naraku smiled. "Of course." He stood up and beckoned the others to follow him.

One by one they stood up and followed him down the hall. Inuyasha smirked as Kagome kept close to his side, much to Koga's dismay. Just to tick Koga off a bit more, and to comfort his friend naturally, he took Kagome's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. It earned him a heartfelt smile from the girl and a glare of death from the young man. Ah, life was good.

Eventually they ended up in a large room filled with computers, monitors, and one huge machine with six openings.

Naraku gave them yet another of his smiles. "This is the game."

"Kinda big isn't it?" Shippo asked.

Naraku smiled. "Yes."

"Not very portable." Miroku commented.

"No way people could afford one of these things." Kagome whispered to Inuyasha.

Koga moved closer to the front of the group and spoke up. "So, when do we get to play this game?"

"Tomorrow morning you will meet in this room. Each of you will enter one of the chambers. You will be equipped with the necessary items to survive the game."

"What if we change our minds?" Inuyasha asked. "What if we decide we want to leave, right now?"

"I will have you arrested. Each of you signed a contract. If you leave now, or any time before the game is completed, you will be in breach of contract, and you will be sued. And my lawyers are well paid to do their job." Naraku continued to smile and talk pleasantly, which is disconcerting when someone is talking about suing you.

Inuyasha felt Kagome shiver. He looked down at her.

"Something doesn't feel right," she whispered to him. He nodded in agreement.

Naraku addressed the group again. "I want you all to meet me back here at nine o'clock in the morning after you have had breakfast. Have a good evening."

With that he turned and walked out of the room. A young woman with platinum blonde hair, bordering on white, silently came into the room and beckoned them. She took them out of the room and back down the hall. Without a word she led them to the front of the building and left them.

"Was anyone else creeped out?" Shippo asked.


	6. Let the Game Begin

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Six: Let the Game Begin

Kagome yawned and looked over at the sleeping body next to her. The room was filled with grumbling noises and the sound of an alarm clock being smacked around. Sango was still sleeping heavily beside her.

Shippo, Miroku, and Koga all managed to sleep in the second queen size bed in the hotel room. Kagome looked over the side of the girls' bed and saw the pallet that Inuyasha had made on the floor inbetween them. She grinned as she remembered the threats of painful death he made to the boys if any of them tried anything.

They were all tired. Likely it was because they spent the evening out. They had been singing karaoke and going from dance club to dance club all night long. They only managed to drag themselves back to the hotel a couple of hours ago.

Kagome giggled as she listened to the others moan and grumble about getting up at insane hours. Then it hit her.

There was only one bathroom.

With a cry she leapt up on the bed, knocking poor Sango to the floor, and made a mad dash for the bathroom. Just as she almost hit the door the others realized when she was doing. Luckily her headstart gave her just enough time to close and lock the door.

"Hurry it up!" Inuyasha yelled. "We all hafta take turns ya know!"

"I need to go to the bathroooooom," whined Shippo.

Sango screeched, "You are a dead woman if you use all the hot water!"

"If you guys slept in your OWN room you'd have your OWN bathroom!" Kagome yelled as she hopped into the shower.

Though she was tempted to take a nice long shower, better yet, a bath, she decided to be merciful. She quickly washed her hair, scrubbed herself down, and hopped out. Then she realized her problem. No clean clothes.

"Sango?" she called.

"Yeah?"

"Can you toss me some clothes?"

Kagome ignored the snickering and pretended to not hear the suggestions the guys were making, or the loud thwacks as they got knocked upside the heads.

After she was dressed she opened the door, letting Shippo in next.

One by one the group showered, dressed, and packed their belongings. They were checking out. It had seemed odd that they would be staying at headquarters instead of coming back to the hotel, but they didn't ask questions.

Kagura drove the now silent and nervous group back.

"Welcome back," Naraku said with a smile as he greeted the players. "If everyone would take their places, we can begin."

Kagome let herself be led to one of the openings in the machine. She didn't like it when they started hooking up an IV.

"What's this for?" she asked.

"In the game you eat. When you eat, then nutrients will be supplied to your body through the IV. If you do not eat, then your body will get no food."

"We could starve?" Shippo asked.

"Not if you eat."

Sango screamed. Kagome looked to see a technician sprawled on the floor. After some questioning, they were told how answering the call of nature would be handled. If Kagome wasn't weirded out before, this was sure to put her over the edge.

More monitors were hooked up, and Kagome was beginning to panic. She did panic when the pulled out a long needle.

"What is THAT for?"

Kagome tried to escape. But felt a pinprick in her arm. She continued to struggle, hearing her name being called out by Inuyasha and Sango. It did not take long for darkness to engulf her.

It felt like her body was buzzing. She felt completely awake and aware, which she thought was rather strange considering she was sure that she had just been drugged to sleep. Slowly she began to feel less like she was floating and more like she was standing on solid ground.

The first thing she saw was Sango. And she looked AMAZING. Her chocolate brown hair was pulled into a ponytail and she was wearing some sort of black leather suit, complete with black with pink trimmed armor. At her waist was a sword and she held in her right hand the largest boomerang Kagome had ever even imagined.

"Wow!"

Sango smiled. "Is that a good 'wow' or a bad one?"

Kagome grinned. "Definitely a good one."

Next Miroku and Shippo began to materialize. Miroku held a golden staff, sharp on one end with rings dangling from it. He wore semi-traditional monks robes and sandals.

Shippo, however, was barely recognizable at first glance. Instead of being a slightly short red-headed teenager, he was not barely two feet tall. He hands looked normal, but his feel looked like an animals feet, and he even had the cutest little puffy tail.

Kagome squealed. "Shippo? Eeeeeee! You look so cuuuuute!"

She couldn't help herself, she scooped him up and spun him around. She was slightly surprised to find that he weighed about as much as a small dog. Weird… she wouldn't have expected an illusion, something in virtual reality, to actually have weight.

"I like your outfit," Miroku said with a grin and a sparkle in his eye. Sango hit him in the head before assuring Kagome that she looked fine.

Before Kagome could look down at her own outfit, another member of their group showed up. It was Koga. Kagome smiled at his transformation. He certainly looked like a wolf demon to her. His legs, shoulders, and torso were covered in an armor that seemed to be accentuated with fur. His enviable long black hair was pulled up into a high ponytail and he wore a headband.

"Koga! You have a tail too! Just like Shippo!" Kagome reached down to touch his tail. It was soft.

That's about when Inuyasha makes his appearance. Kagome drops Koga's tail and stares open mouthed at her friend. His face and the red clad body seemed mostly the same, but his hair was long and silver! It was gorgeous!

"Inuyasha?" Kagome gave another squeal as she caught sight of the two twitching appendages on the top of his head. "You have doggie ears!"

"Nice outfit," Koga laughed.

His comment stopped Kagome's reach towards Inuyasha's soft looking doggie ears. That's the second comment about her outfit. She looked at a blushing Inuyasha before looking down at her outfit.

No.

No no no no no.

"No fair!" she screamed into the darkness. "What pervert designed my outfit? Where are my miko robes?"

Even Sango couldn't help but laugh at poor Kagome's predicament. Instead of being dressed as a warrior she was dressed in a schoolgirl's outfit. Worse, the sailor style outfit of a JUNIOR high schoolgirl.

Just as she was about to stamp her foot and demand that the game be rebooted, her friends began to disappear.


	7. Alone

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Seven: Alone

Kagome tried very hard not to cry as her friends disappeared. Just as everything turned black, again, she felt something. Pain. Lots of intense pain. It felt as if something was being ripped from her hip. Kagome screamed.

Her eyes popped open and the fear she had earlier was intensified a thousand times. She had her friends with her before. But now… now she was completely alone.

Alone… and in a bed in a strange room?

_Ok….this is totally weird._ She sat up quickly and jumped to her feet. The room looked a little familiar. Then it dawned on her. It looked like the generic room where many role-playing games started. _Not very original, are you Naraku?_

On the other side of the bedside table was a treasure chest. Kagome only felt a little twinge of guilt as she opened it up. Inside was a small vial_. Probably some sort of healing potion. _ She went to put it in her pocket when she realized that she didn't have any pockets in her new clothes.

After calling the game designers perverts once more, and hoping they were monitoring the gesture she gave them as she said it, she began looking around the room for something that might help.

That's when she spied the yellow bag across the room. Perfect! She tucked the vial of glowing blue liquid in the backpack and slung it across her shoulders. Humming to herself she scoured the room looking for more goodies. She came up with a red feather that sparkled and a green leaf. Since they were the only things in the room that could be moved, she figured she should take them. One thing she learned playing RPGs, take anything that isn't nailed down.

"Ok," she told herself, "Time to get going."

When she left the room, Kagome found herself in a hallway. She tried opening every door she came across, feeling a bit like a thief. Unfortunately, the doors didn't open for her. It didn't phase her though, she would just go on to the next door.

The entire building was empty. But at least there was another treasure chest in the lobby. This one held two blue vials, which she took of course.

Still humming she walked out of the front doors and smiled. It was a small village with a few scattered people. She stood still and watched them. A woman in red was busy digging a hole in a small garden. A man in green was sweeping an area outside of a door of one of the other buildings. A very similar man in green was across the way doing the very same thing. A young boy was racing around and around in a large circle chasing a chicken. The eerie thing was that they kept doing those same few movements, never altering a pattern or a path.

A little unnerved, Kagome decided to take off out of the village and start finding her friends. She passed a few more similar looking people doing a variety of chores…over and over again. She picked up her pace. When she finally saw the edge of town she began to run.

And she ran right into some sort of forcefield and was knocked to the ground.

"Guess I hafta unlock something first," she grumbled as she stood up and rubbed her sore rear. "Time to start chatting with the locals."

She walked to the first person she saw. He was a man in a mostly brown outfit whose job seemed to be pacing aimlessly.

"Excuse me…"

The man looked at her. "Be careful, there are demons in the forest."

"Demons? Really?"

"Be careful, there are demons in the forest."

Kagome smiled nervously. "Yeah… I got that… how do I get to the forest though?"

"Be careful, there are demons in the forest."

Kagome rolled her eyes at her stupidity. _He must be a non-playable character, and that is his line._

She ALMOST told him "thank you", but shut her mouth quickly, knowing what his only response would be. Could be.

The next couple of people weren't much more helpful. A woman in an orange kimono had the same line as the first guy. Kagome wondered if she should let Naraku know that repetitive lines like that could be annoying.

"I wonder if Inuyasha and the others are having this much trouble." She sat down on a bench she found and put her head in her hands. She had been wandering for hours and wasn't any closer to being able to leave town. However, she was a few items richer after looting a couple of homes that were unlocked.

Kagome looked down at the item in her hand. It was an arrow. Of course, since she didn't have a bow it wasn't terribly useful just yet.

"I've talked to every single character!" Kagome yelled, hoping the people monitoring would hear her. "Even the CHICKEN!"

Feeling a bit tired, bitter, and defeated, Kagome made her way back to where she began the game. A nap sure sounded good to her.

"Good morning, dear."

Kagome blinked.

"MOM?"

The pretty woman with short dark hair smiled at her from behind the counter of the inn. Sure enough, it was her mother.

"Would you like to take a rest?"

"Mom, what are you doing here?"

Her mother smiled. "Would you like to take a rest?"

"How did you get here? When did you get here?"

"Would you like to take a rest?"

"…Mom…?"

"Would you like to take a rest?"

_Mom is a NPC? How is that possible?_ Kagome sighed heavily. This was certainly not something she expected. _Is this real, or do they pull images from our memories for the game? They surely wouldn't have put my mother as a character in a game…_

"Yes." Kagome finally answered her mother's question.

Once more everything went dark. Once more she woke up in the strange little room. This time the treasure chest was empty though. Kagome grabbed her yellow backpack and left the room yawning.

This time her mother was waiting for her in the large reception area instead of behind the desk. There were a couple of other people standing about, including her little brother Souta and her grandfather.

"Hey," Kagome said as a greeting.

Suddenly her mother's face lost its smile and looked worried.

"Darling! Your father was hunting this morning and has been captured by Naraku!"

Kagome gave her mother a strange look. "Dad's been dead for five years, Mom."

"You must save him!"

Oh yeah, it's just a game. Kagome sighed and shrugged. "Okey doke. Which way out of the village?"

"Here, take this with you."

Magically, her mother was suddenly holding a small, rather flimsy looking bow in her hands. Kagome took it and smiled. _Now I can use that arrow. Wait. I only have one arrow. _As luck and the game gods would have it, her mother magically produced three more arrows.

"Thanks!"

"Speak with the priestess Kaede in the next village, she will be able to help you."

Kagome laughed out loud. That was it. That was the key to finally getting to leave the village and start on her journey to find her friends, get the jewel thingie, and get out of the stupid game.

"Sounds good." Her stomach grumbled loudly. "Um…is there anything to eat? I'm starving?" More grumblies.

"Be careful, there are demons in the forest," warned her mother.

"Uh huh, demons in the forest. Do you have any food? Bread? Cheese? Milk? Anything at all?"

"Be careful, there are demons in the forest," warned her mother.

Kagome smiled a little less brightly than usual and waved good-bye to her mother. Once they start repeating themselves its pretty useless to ask them anything. Before leaving the room she spoke to her brother, who gave her a little bag of gold pieces and a quiver to hold her arrows. Her grandfather gave her five pieces of paper with strange symbols on it that Kagome couldn't decipher. Unfortunately no one gave her any food, which was what she wanted most at the moment. She figured she would just have to find some along the way.

First logical stop, the garden.

Kagome managed to pull up a three carrots and one potato. Not exactly a feast, but at least she could munch on a carrot. She poked her head into the two shops in town, but one only sold weapons that she couldn't afford, and the other sold herbs that she had no idea what to do with. She looked sadly at the paltry amount of food in her pack and started out of town.

_Koga, Shippo, and Inuyasha are demons,_ she thought to herself. _I wonder if I will find one of them in the forest…_

After about an hour of walking Kagome was starting to get a little irritable. You weren't supposed to get so tired playing a stupid game after all. And you sure aren't supposed to get blisters on your feet!

Kagome twirled the green leaf that she had just found in a treasure box hidden in some brush. _I wonder what this could be for. It isn't edible. Why weren't we given any instructions? Man, what I wouldn't do for a strategy guide right about now._

With a shrug she tucked the item into her miracle backpack. She smiled. It really was an amazing backpack. No matter how much stuff she put into the thing, it never got full. And it never got heavy. The best part was that all she had to do was think about the item she wanted, and that is the item her fingers would come into contact with when she reached her hand in. It had taken her awhile to catch onto that nifty feature.

Kagome froze.

"What was that?"

There was a feeling in her stomach. An odd feeling she couldn't identify. It was almost like she could hear notes of a vague tune in the back of her head, and it was an ominous one. She tightened her grip on her bow and drew an arrow from her quiver.

It felt like time stopped. Then suddenly Kagome wasn't alone anymore. Keeping her company were two small demons. Rabbit ones from the look of them. Deranged killer rabbits to be exact.

She tried to ready her arrow, but the rabbit on the right attacked too quickly. It ripped into her leg.

"OW!"

The second rabbit attacked as the first one drew back. This one attacked the same leg. Kagome wondered if that second one hit bone. Sure felt like it.

Finally Kagome was able to pull the arrow back and let it fly. It flew. Yeah, flew right between the deranged rabbit demons and landed on the far side of the clearing harmlessly. Kagome cursed at herself. Then gasped. Her arrow simply disappeared!

"I guess I only get one shot."

Worse than that, now she realized she had a very limited number of arrows to use. No second chances. If she misses, she can't go retrieve it and try again.

When she gathered her wits, after having another chunk taken out of her body (this time on the arm) she kicked the rabbit on the right as hard as she could. It dropped to the ground, but wasn't out of the game yet. Next she hit it with her fist over the head. She gasped in surprise when it simply fizzled away.

Unfortunately, the time she spent gaping at the first rabbit gave the second one a perfect opportunity to attack.

A few kicks and hits later, and that bunny rabbit from heck disappeared too.

Kagome fell to the ground. She was completely exhausted! Not to mention bruised and bleeding. Something sparkly caught her attention. She crawled over to it, too tired to actually stand back up.

"Gold!" It was another small bag of a few golden coins. She scoured around the area some more and found a vial of red liquid.

Quickly she opened her bag. After dropping in the money she pictured the vial of blue liquid in her mind and pulled one out.

"One must be a healing potion. But which one?" She thought back to all the role playing video games she had ever played, and decided on trying the blue one. Usually one of the first things they give you is a healing potion.

It tasted pretty much like water, but with a mediciny taste. Suddenly she felt less tired and a little tickly. With a laugh she watched as her body began to mend itself.

"Didn't even need a walkthrough," she bragged to herself.

Another hour later she didn't feel very much like bragging. In fact, mostly she just felt like praying to live. Rabbit demons, squirrel demons, pig demons, and one nasty wasp demon all seemed to be following her every footstep. She was just grateful that they only seemed to attack in ones or twos. Unfortunately she was also down to just one healing potion left. The demons seemed to drop red liquids, money, and more of those stupid useless leaves and an occasional arrow, but rarely did they drop healing potions.

Evil creatures.

Bloody and battered from countless battles, Kagome staggered along the path. She didn't want to use that last potion unless absolutely necessary.

A sound caught her attention and she cringed. It took her a second to realize it wasn't the sound that the demons seemed to make before attacking. This one was different. She looked around and saw something floating away. It looked like the ghost of a flying snake to her. She hurried along, but wasn't able to catch up.

She stopped where she saw the ghost snake come on to the path.

"Another path?" Very faintly Kagome could see another path off to the right. It looked like a deer, _probably a deer DEMON_, path. Her instincts screamed at her to check it out, so she did.

It was mostly an uphill path. She crossed a creek by jumping on stones and hopped over a fallen tree or two. Luckily the few demons who crossed her path weren't too terribly strong and she managed to keep walking.

The sight at the end of the path made her cry. She found Inuyasha at last.

And he had an arrow in his chest, pinned to a tree.


	8. Demons and Mikos

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Eight: Demons and Mikos

_Kagome… why?_

Inuyasha was having difficulty breathing. The arrow in his chest kept him pinned to the tree. He had to dig his claw into the tree to keep from hanging by it.

_Demon! Monster! Contemptuous beast! Animal! Die demon!_

_Why Kagome… why would you shoot me? I thought we were friends…_

Her angry bitter words filled his mind. The look of disgust on her face as she faced him tore at his heart. He couldn't believe she turned on him like that. He couldn't believe that she would try to actually KILL him! Why?

Suddenly she appeared from behind the trees where she had just left. _Did she come back to mock me? To finish me off?_

He was angry. He was hurt. He was a demon thirsting for revenge.

"Inuyasha?"

He watched as her eyes opened wide, filling with tears. He glared at her. _Something's not right here._ Then he looked at her… REALLY looked at her. Her eyes were softer than before. There was no malice, no hatred. _It wasn't her! Kagome didn't shoot me!_

"Kagome!"

She rushed towards him, tears streaming down her face as she babbled on and on. He could only catch a word here and there as she timidly tried to figure out a way to free him. Inuyasha kicked himself for believing for an instant that she had betrayed him. _But they were identical…_

"Kagome," he said softly, looking down at his friend. "I need you to pull the arrow out."

"I can't." Her voice was barely a whisper. Inuyasha was astonished that he could hear her at all. That's when he realized he could hear things he never could before. He could even hear her heartbeat as it raced in her chest. He smirked, _cool, another power._

"Yes you can. You have to."

Her fingers trembled as they took hold of the arrow. She pulled but nothing happened. When Inuyasha groaned in pain she let go of it like it had been on fire and backed up.

"Can we… can we break the arrow?"

Inuyasha shook his head. "I tried. I've been trying, but all it does is make it hurt more. Please help me."

Perhaps 'please' is the magic word after all. As soon as he said it, she straightened up and grasped the arrow. She glared at it for a moment, then closed her eyes. Inuyasha's mouth dropped open as her hands glowed pink, causing the arrow to glow pink. Then it just disappeared and he fell to the ground.

Inuyasha clutched his bleeding chest and swore loudly. He heard Kagome frantically opening her backpack and felt her put something to his lips. He obeyed her command to drink it.

Slowly the pain eased, then vanished. Kagome was smiling before him.

"What was that?" he asked.

"A healing potion. Kinda helpful, huh?"

Inuyasha began pulling at the cloth of his shirt to open it up and examine his chest. He noticed that Kagome blushed, but didn't look away. He guessed that she was just as curious as he was.

"There's not even a mark!" he exclaimed. "Where did you get it?"

Kagome sat on the ground before him and grinned. "Well, I found a few bottles in the village, you gotta love raiding the treasure chests in the houses, and some I found after defeating some demons along the way."

_Demons?_ Inuyasha looked at Kagome again. This time he noticed the cuts and bruises and blood. _She's been fighting demons?_

"You need to drink some, Kagome. It will heal you too, right?"

She shrugged and looked away. "It was the last bottle. I was saving it for something special."

He swore at her colorfully, but she managed to not once look properly chastised. Inuyasha was angry that she wasted the last bottle of healing potion on him. It just wasn't right!

"How do we get some more?" he asked once his temper was back under control.

Kagome shrugged again. "Well, we can fight more demons and hope they drop one, or we can go to a village and rob all the treasure chests we find or hope we find a shop that sells some. I've been getting these gold coins every time I defeat a demon."

Inuyasha smiled an evil smile and cracked his knuckles. "Let's go take down some demons!"

"I was thinking of finding a village…"

"Let's go, Kagome! I smell demons!"

"Inuyasha! The village?"

Of course he heard her, he had his new super hearing thanks to his new doggie ears. He was also enjoying his new sense of smell, strength, and speed too much to stop and pay attention to anything else. While keeping an eye on his companion he raced around the forest area. It felt good to run.

"You're too slow," he complained to the girl as he finally made his way back to her. He grimaced when he noticed her limping slightly. _Of course she's slow, you moron. She's badly injured!_

He landed in front of her and turned around. He hoped she wouldn't be offended by an offer of a piggy back ride. "Hop on, Kagome. Let's go find that village of yours."

The smile he got was bright and sunny, and it did funny things to his heartbeat.

"The path I was on leads to Kaede's village."

"Kaede?"

Kagome nodded. "Yeah, I'm supposed to find her so that I can find out how to go save my dad from Naraku."

Inuyasha gave her a funny look. "I thought your dad was dead?"

"He is. But you know what's weird?" She didn't wait for him to answer. "My mom, brother, and grandfather are in the game. Or at least, people who look and sound just like them. It completely freaked me out when I first saw them!"

"Why would he make characters to look like your family?"

"And sound like them, too! It's creepy."

"And you."

It was Kagome's turn to give him a funny look. "I'm creepy?"

He shook his head. "Noooooo! I meant that they made a character that looks like you too. She's the one who shot me."

They stood together in silence before Kagome asked, "Why?"

It was a question that neither had an answer to. But Inuyasha was determined to ask Naraku as forcefully as he had to as soon as the game was over. He didn't like the fact that he made a Kagome look-alike who would try to murder someone. Especially him!

"Keh," he said dismissively, hoping to ease the tension. "We'll figure all this out later. Now hop on and let's go find Kaede!"

He was expecting Kagome to hop on his back and they would race away. He wasn't expecting her to blush bright red and stare at the ground. It irked him that she didn't want to touch him. They weren't exactly strangers! Not really.

"I've um….." she looked away. "I'm not sure I can."

He growled.

"Did you just growl?" she asked, looking rather astonished.

"No."

She grinned. "You did too! You growled! What a cute puppy!" Inuyasha was surprised when she reached up and began rubbing his ears.

"I'm not a dog!" He yanked his ears away from her fingers and huffed. He couldn't stop his ears from twitching. It had tickled. And felt a little good. Oh okay, it felt really good, but that isn't the point, dang it!

Grumbling he began stalking off in the direction of the path. _Go ahead and let her walk. See if I care if she gets blisters or a broken leg or leeches or something. I don't care!_ When he didn't hear her footsteps following him he grew concerned. He lied, he really did care.

"Aren't ya coming?" The whimper that escaped her lips had him by her side in seconds in super overprotective mode. "What's wrong?"

Once again she turned bright red and turned from him. It was really beginning to tick him off.

"I can't fix the problem if you don't tell me what it is!" he yelled at her. It bothered him that she didn't trust him enough to help her.

"I uh… kinda… I hafta… um…"

"Spit it out!" He gave her a little shake.

"Eep! Don't DO that! I have to go to the bathroom you idiot!" Once the words were out of her mouth she turned a whole new shade of red.

Inuyasha blushed too. "Oh." He let go of her and shifted uncomfortably. "Well… just go then. There're some bushes over there, I promise I won't look if that's what you're worried about."

"That's not the problem. I just… well… this is a game! My real body is OUT THERE! What happens when this body… does its business? Does my real one do it too? How embarrassing would that be?"

He scratched his head. That never really occurred to him. Then he remembered Sango decking one of the technicians.

"They've taken care of that, Kagome."

She looked up at him, beginning to bounce back and forth in an effort to not explode. "Huh? How?"

"Tubes."

"Tubes? Where?"

"Look, just trust me on this. It's taken care of. Just go to the bathroom before you hurt yourself!" He turned her towards the bushes and gave her a push. "Besides," he called out to her as she danced along to the bushes, "You won't be the only one doing it. I've already done it three times!"

He heard Kagome snicker. "Marking your territory?"

"I'm not a DOG!"


	9. Kaede’s Advice

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Nine: Kaede's Advice

Kagome smiled and squealed in joy as the wind rushed against her face. Riding on Inuyasha's back as he raced through the forest was much better than any carnival ride she had ever been on. It had surprised her at how smooth of a ride it was. Most of the time it felt more like flying. Though her tummy would go all fluttery when he would land and take off again, the same kind of feeling she would get on a roller coaster back home. She loved it!

Suddenly Kagome was no longer on his back. Suddenly she was face to face with two rather large wasp demons and a boar demon. In the excitement of riding/flying with Inuyasha, she hadn't heard their little tune of warning.

She hated fighting with the wasp demons, their stingers hurt like crazy. So she decided to take on the boar demon first. She wasn't fast enough. Inuyasha had him fizzled to a memory in no time flat. He turned to glare at her before charging at the wasps.

"Stay back!"

Kagome watched in awe as he took out the two wasps. After they were gone she started going through the grass.

"Now what are you doing?"

"Looking for stuff they dropped." She kicked at the grass as she looked. She tossed the tiny bags of gold in her bag and scooped up a red vial of liquid.

"What are you in such a bad mood for? I killed the demons didn't I?"

"Yes."

"Then be happy. We also found a healing potion. Drink up and lets get going."

"It's not healing potion, I'm not sure what it is yet."

"Why are you being so snippy?"

Kagome glared at him. "I'm supposed to fight too, you know! I'm not useless! I won't get any stronger if I never fight."

She tried to storm off back down the path, but she didn't get far before a clawed hand reached out and grasped her arm. Reluctantly she let herself be turned around. Even though she knew it was childish, she squeezed her eyes shut so she wouldn't have to look at him.

He sighed. "Open your eyes, Kagome."

She refused.

"Do you really want me to pry them open?"

She peeked out of her right eye. He didn't look mad anymore, so she opened both eyes and glared at him again. "If you don't fight you don't get stronger. I don't want to be weak!"

He shakes his head at her and lightly bops her on the head. "You're also pretty badly wounded, you moron. If you fight when you can barely stand you won't have a chance of making it to the end to GET stronger. When you get healed you can fight in as many battles as you want."

"Stop using logic on me!"

He chuckled and reached into her bag. He came up with nothing. "What the… Kagome, I thought you had one more! This thing is empty!"

"We do." She pushes his hand away and reaches into the bag and pulls out the vial. "Odd… I guess it only works for me."

Grumbling about unfairness, Inuyasha takes the vial from her and puts it to her lips and waits impatiently until she drank. Together they watched as wounds healed. The blood was still there, but the wound was closed.

"That never gets old."

"You are so weird, Kagome."

She grinned at him. "You thought it was cool, too. Don't deny it."

"Feh."

After dusting herself off and slipping her backpack back on, Kagome was ready to go. She reached for her bow, only to have it taken from her by her companion.

"How come you never use this thing? You were going to fight that boar barehanded when you have a bow?"

Kagome sighed heavily, shoulders slumping. "I can't seem to get the hang of it. And I only have a few arrows left. Once I shoot them, they disappear."

"So, practice."

"Well," Kagome explained irritably, "I would, except for that I can't. I can't use the arrows outside of battle, I've tried. They just disappear from my hand and reappear back in the quiver. And I've been battling by myself if you remember, and considering I could never get an arrow to hit, it seemed like a bad time."

Inuyasha shoved the bow into her hands and started down the path. "Good thing you have me. Now you can start using that thing in battle."

She grinned at his retreating back. _He's right!_ Suddenly she was looking forward to the next battle.

A few hours later, Kagome was out of arrows. However, she was quite pleased with the fact that the last two actually connected. Not fatally, but at least they hit.

"We should camp for the night," Inuyasha said as he hopped down from the tree he was in. Kagome had sent him up in hopes that he would be able to see the village. Unfortunately he hadn't. "We can keep walking in the morning."

Kagome plopped to the ground. "I won't argue with you there. I'm pooped!"

"You wouldn't be if you let me carry you more often." Inuyasha sank down beside her, not complaining when she rested her head against his shoulder.

"I don't want to tire you out or anything. Plus it wouldn't be very fair of me to always be hitching on ride on you. You're not a pack mule."

"I'd rather carry you than have to keep going so slow."

Kagome glared at him. She opened her mouth to complain about him calling her slow. _Then again, compared to how fast he could go, I really must seem slow_. So instead she decided to change the topic.

"What's your favorite color?"

Inuyasha looked startled. "What?"

"We're playing a game. You tell me something about you then I tell you something about me. I'm asking the first question. What's your favorite color?"

She felt him shift a bit, putting his arm around her and drawing her more comfortably in. He rested his head on hers and yawned.

"Guys don't have favorite colors."

"Yes they do. What is it?"

He paused. "Red."

Kagome looked at his red outfit and snickered softly.

"Don't be smart." Inuyasha warned. "Ok, my turn. What's the most embarrassing thing you've done at school?"

"What? Aren't you supposed to just ask me what MY favorite color is?"

"Its light yellow, I already knew that one. Besides, you didn't say there were any rules. Question for question. And you hafta be truthful."

"Hey, now you're just adding rules to the game!"

"Answer the question, Kagome. Or are you chicken?"

She growled. "Fine. Let's see… most embarrassing thing… ever?"

"Nah, just in high school I guess."

"Ok, that narrows it down some. Rules out some good ones though. Oh, I know, it was when my grandfather called me in sick with some ridiculous disease. When I went back to class a couple days later, the teacher had asked me how my Hepatic Lipidosis was. One of my friends even went to the trouble of bringing me nutrient supplements from the vets after he did some research on it."

"Hepatic Lipidosis?"

"It's a fatty liver disease in cats." Kagome explained. "My cat Buyo had the disease a few years before. It was touch and go with him for awhile, but he lived. I guess Grandpa got a little confused."

"In cats?"

"Yup."

"Is he special to you?"

"My grandpa?"

"The boy who brought you the stuff."

Kagome smiled. "Sorry, already answered your first question. Now its my turn. How old were you when you had your first kiss?"

He made a show of thinking about the question. Making loud hmmm-ing sounds. Finally, at Kagome's nudging in the ribs, he answered. "Seven. Kissed a girl in my class on a dare."

"Not very romantic."

"Feh. My turn. Is he special to you?"

"Who?"

"The boy-friend."

Kagome yawned. "Hojo is just a friend. No romantical feelings towards him at all, though the other girls at school all seemed to think he was something special. Guess he just wasn't the right guy for me."

One by one the stars began appearing in the sky. Kagome and Inuyasha continued to ask their questions. Some were embarrassing, some were personal, and some were just plain silly. Eventually they fell asleep.

The next morning, after yawning and stretching, they took off at full speed in the direction of Kaede's.

By lunchtime they finally found it. There were several huts and a few people standing around. Everyone had their one line that they said. Each one hinting that a priestess lived in a hut at the edge of the village and to beware of demons.

"I have been waiting for ye."

Inuyasha and Kagome looked up to see an elderly woman in priestess robes and an eyepatch. She was watching them carefully with a hint of a smile on her weathered face.

"Are you Kaede?" asked Kagome.

"I am. Ye seek the Shikon Jewel."

"Yes, we are. How did you know?"

"It's part of the game, stupid." Inuyasha nudged her as he rolled his eyes.

"Not all is as it seems, young demon. Be cautious."

Kagome looked at the woman. Something was definitely strange about her. She was different from the other NPCs, this one seemed to be free thinking. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Aye."

"Are you real?"

The woman smiled. "Reality is a matter of perception, is it not?"

"That doesn't answer the question, old woman."

"Inuyasha! Be nice!"

"You must retrieve the shards of the Shikon Jewel that were taken from you, young Kagome. They belong to you and you alone. They are dangerous."

"Where do we look?"

Kaede looked at her sadly. "Return home, Kagome. Speak to your mother." The old woman turned to go back into her hut. "Hurry."

Kagome felt as if someone had dumped ice water on her. She turned to Inuyasha, eyes wide in fear.

"Take me home!"

He nodded, then turned to wait for her to hop on. They raced at top speed to Kagome's village. They dodged battles and took no breaks. By nightfall the reached the edge of town. At least, what was left of the town.

Half of the building were on fire, several others were already little more than charcoal remains. Kagome ran through the town to where she knew her family was.

In front of her burning house she saw them. She saw the bodies of her family. With tears in her eyes she checked them for signs of life. Only her mother was still breathing, though it was slow and labored.

"Hang on, Mom!" Kagome pleaded as she checked her bag for anything that might heal the woman. She sobbed as her fingers came up with nothing. Her magic bag was failing her. It refused to let her save her mother.

Warm brown eyes looked up at her. "Kagome… the sword… free it… your love holds the key…" The woman pressed something into her hands. "Take this… it belongs to you now." She reached up and touched Kagome's cheek lovingly before taking her last breath. "I love you, my precious daughter."

Kagome held the dead woman to her chest and wept.


	10. The Sword

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Ten: The Sword

Inuyasha couldn't erase Kagome's anguished face from his mind. Reminding her that it wasn't really her mother didn't seem to make anything better. The haunted look in her eyes made him quit trying. So they walked in silence back to Kaede's village. Silence was better than hearing her sniffling though.

"My love holds the key." Inuyasha's head whipped around. It was the most words she had strung together at once since watching her mother die. _The character of her mother_, he reminded himself. Bad enough Kagome was thinking of the wom… CHARACTER as her mother.

Finally she looks him in the eyes. "What do you suppose it means?"

"Dunno." He shrugs while trying to think of something to say to keep the conversation going. "Something to do with your heart? Would hate to have to cut it out of you to check though."

Kagome laughed and hit him on the arm, making him grin.

"Idiot." Her voice held no heat as she insulted him.

The next hour of walking had a much lighter mood. They continued their question game, sticking to unimportant and lighthearted topics. She found out his favorite song, actress, and anime. She also found out that he never read a western or went ice skating. He found out her favorite comic book, sport, and ice cream flavor. He also learned that she preferred crunchy peanut butter,

But there was a question that had been bothering the young man since they left Kagome's village, and he decided to go ahead and ask it on his next turn.

"Why did it bother you so much?" He didn't have to clarify. He knew she would know.

Kagome stopped walking and looked at the ground, biting her lip. If he could have turned back time to take the question back, he might have done it. When she looked back up at him her eyes were watery and sad.

"My dad died in a fire."

Inuyasha inhaled sharply and swore under his breath. He hadn't expected that.

"In fact, he died almost exactly like my mother… well, my computer simulated mother just did. And the house on fire looked exactly the way my house looked that night. Funny huh?" Neither one laughed. "When I first left the village, the place I left was little more than a large hut. That place we just saw… it was my house… the same house that burned down when I was a child." Kagome looked at Inuyasha. "How could he have known? How could they have possibly known?"

As much as he wished he did, Inuyasha didn't have an answer for her. But it creep him out a bit.

"Was there an article in the paper or something about his death? Maybe there was a picture published and he found it."

Kagome thought about it as they started walking again. "Hmmm… I don't know. It's possible. Though I would have to ask my mom," her voice broke, but she tried to cover it up by clearing her throat, "…or my grandpa."

"Even if there was, and he found it… why would he do something so… cruel?" Inuyasha wondered aloud, not fooled for an instant.

"Do you miss having black hair and brown eyes, or do you prefer your new silver and gold look?" Kagome asked.

Blink blink.

"What?"

Kagome watched the path ahead of them as they walked. "My turn, remember? Do you miss having black hair and brown eyes, or do you prefer your new silver and gold look?"

Inuyasha smiled as he realized she was playing their question game again. _Nice subject change, Kagome. Very smooth._

"I kind of like the silver and gold look myself. Makes me look more exotic." He ignored the snort coming from Kagome. "What is the cheesiest pick up line a guy ever said to you?"

His heart fluttered a bit as she laughed. He had missed that sound and was proud of himself for being able to bring it back.

"Hmmm… let see…. Oh! I know. He asked: Did it hurt? Then I asked: What? Then he said: When you fell from Heaven?"

They both laughed this time.

The game continued until they reached the next village. Unfortunately, all of the villagers replied that they don't talk to demons. Eventually they decided that Inuyasha would stay behind while Kagome went alone to ask questions instead of beating the computer simulated villagers into computer simulated pulp. Much to their annoyance, the villagers spoke their lines (now civilized and polite) to the girl once she was alone.

Miko Kagome: Hello

Male villager in blue: The potions shop sells herbs that hurt and heal.

_Ok, so it's a good idea to stock up on healing potions and some that can be used against the enemy in combat. Got it._ She walks a little farther and speaks to the next villager.

Miko Kagome: Hello, rude villager.

Male villager in green: Demons are roaming in the woods, be careful!

Miko Kagome: No kidding.

_No helpful information there_. She rolls her eyes and speaks to the person beside him.

Miko Kagome: Hey.

Female villager in red: There is a legend of a sword than only a half-demon can wield.

Miko Kagome: Yes! Where is the sword?

Female villager in red: There is a legend of a sword than only a half-demon can wield.

Miko Kagome: Where is it?

Female villager in red: There is a legend of a sword than only a half-demon can wield.

Kagome sighs as she tries REALLY hard not to shake the villager till her teeth rattled. _Stupid one line speaking computer villager._ The young woman continues through the village, speaking to everyone she saw. Including the dog. Hey, you never know unless you try.

"Now what?" Inuyasha asks as she plops down beside him on the grass, letting herself fall backwards.

She blew her bangs out of her face and turned towards him. "I guess we go into all the houses and loot the place." Evil chuckling and grinning. "Never felt more like stealing than from these people."

Inuyasha laughs, suddenly filled with humor, as he stands up and helps his friend back up to her feet. "Are you sure your character is the Priestess and not the Thief?"

She gives him a brilliant smile walks back to the first villager. Pushing past the male villager in blue, she enters his hut. The poke around and find an arrow and a treasure chest with a healing potion.

"I wonder if I'm allowed to change my character part way through the game. Think I would get better stuff if I was a Thief?" She put the items into her bag. "You know, like some sort of bonus thing?"

"Doubt it."

"Killjoy."

They loot the next two huts and find a couple more useful items and another funny little leaf. The next place they entered looked a little different than the one and two room huts that they had been in.

"Yay!" Kagome jumps up and down as she recognizes the place as the potions shop. "A store, we found the store!"

Inuyasha rolls his eyes. "What is it with women and shopping?"

His smart aleck remark gets him a punch in the shoulder and a scowl. It was a small price to pay for annoying her though.

Miko Kagome: Hello, shopkeeper.

Potions Shopkeeper: Hello traveler. Would you like to Buy or Sell?

Miko Kagome: Buy

To the right of the shopkeeper appears a list of items, including healing potions, phoenix feathers, antidotes, poison gases, and a rope.

"I wonder what the rope is for."

"Probably for escaping a battle," Inuyasha says. "I played an RPG once that used a rope for escaping. I never use them though. My motto is to fight every battle."

Kagome made a harumphing sound. "What if that isn't my motto?" He rolled his eyes at her, knowing that she was just as likely to fight every battle as he was.

Miko Kagome: We'll take ten potions, two phoenix feathers, and five antidotes please."

The shopkeeper kept smiling but didn't say anything in return or give her any items.

"Didn't work."

"Nice observation, Inuyasha. I can SEE that it didn't work."

"Kinda touchy there, Kags."

Grrrrrrr. "How about being a bit more helpful, INU."

"Try just saying the items instead of saying it as a sentence. Maybe that will work." He was amused with her growling, but hid his grin so he wouldn't get walloped.

Kagome nodded, trying to tamp down her frustrations. _Why is this game being so stupid difficult? Give us a break!_

Miko Kagome: Ten potions, two phoenix feathers, five antidotes.

Silence. _Stupid shopkeepers. Stupid game creators. Stupid rules._

Miko Kagome: Ten potions.

Silence.

"Can't we just take the items?" Kagome asked innocently.

"You seriously are a thief. This game is corrupting you." Inuyasha snickered as he leaned his hip against the counter, no longer trying to hide his amusement.

Kagome pointed to the potions. "I. Just. Want. A. Potion!" With each word she spoke she jabbed at the word beside the shopkeeper.

Shopkeeper: Thank you. Would you like to purchase something else?

Suddenly on the counter were five potions. Inuyasha and Kagome looked at them. _What the…?_ Curiously, Kagome poked at the word beside the shopkeeper again.

Shopkeeper: Thank you. Would you like to purchase something else?

Kagome burst out laughing, joined by her silver haired friend. Once her giggles subsided, she poked at the word a few more times, then poked at the word for phoenix feathers a couple of times, and five times for the antidote.

"How much gold do we have left?" asked Inuyasha as they left the shop.

Kagome looked in her bag. "I think around 300 pieces, more or less. Why?"

He gave her a grin and pointed across the street. "Because I see a weapon shop right over there!"

Unfortunately, just about everything was out of their price range. There were several items that simply weren't available to them yet. Still, it was fun looking. Kagome decided to buy a couple of special arrows. One was supposed to poison, and the other was supposed to turn the enemy to stone.

"That was a bust."

"Not for me!" Kagome looked at her new arrows happily before putting them in her quiver. "Should we stay at an inn?"

Inuyasha glared.

"Aren't you supposed to stay at inns whenever you can?"

Inuyasha continued to glare.

"Isn't it supposed to heal you too?"

"Are you sure they let DEMONS in the inn?" he asked angrily.

Kagome was silent for a moment. "Let's keep going, not much for us here. I bet if we keep following the path we'll hit a different town."

"…Kagome…"

Although he felt guilty for not letting her stay and rest at the inn, he was grateful that she wasn't making him stay. There was something angry about this village that made Inuyasha uncomfortable. He followed the humming girl down the path.

The next town was only a few hours away. By the time they got there, they had quite a few more gold coins. They decided to not buy any more potions, but to stock up on food items and arrows.

They decided to make camp when the first star twinkled.

"I can't believe we aren't any closer to finding the sword," Kagome complained as she fell back onto the soft grass.

"Your love sure ain't doing much to help us here, Kags."

Grumble grumble.

"You sure that's what she said?"

Kagome flopped onto her side in a huff. "Yes!" She closed her eyes, frustrated with herself for not being able to find the sword. Her mother's words played in her head. "Soul's window."

"What?"

She sat up and stared at him. "She also said something about a soul's window."

"Eyes. The eyes are the window to the soul."

Kagome squealed and launched herself at Inuyasha. "Yes! That must be it! But… whose eyes?"

They sat together and thought about it. Kagome even tried poking at her eyes a bit to see if anything happened. Really it just made her eye hurt. With a sigh she sat back and looked at her friend. _He has such beautiful eyes. _

She cocked her head to one side. There was something weird with his right eye.

"Hey… Inuyasha…"

"What?"

"Um… can I see your eye for a second?"

Quickly he covered his eyes with his hands and hid his head. "NO WAY! I saw you poke yourself in the eye. You're not doing that to me too!"

She grabbed his arm and tried to pry it away from his face. "I won't poke you. Probably. Just let me see it!"

"No!"

"INUYASHA!"

He stood up to run from her, but she tackled him to the ground before he could take his first step. She sat straddling his chest and pulling at his arms with all of her might. Finally the dog demon gave up and let her have her way.

"Baby," she accused.

"Yes, Sweetie?"

She snickered and batted his hands from his face. "Idiot. I was calling you a big sissy baby."

"Ohhhhhhh….."

Inuyasha's eyes opened wide as she leaned closer. And closer. He could feel her breath on his cheek. He wasn't quite sure what to do. So he waited for Kagome to make the move. And she did.

Reaching out slowly, Kagome brought her hand to Inuyasha's face. Her fingers barely touching him.

That's when he felt it. Blinding pain.

Inuyasha screamed out, knocking Kagome away from him. It felt as if she had stuck a hot poker in his eye. He was about to yell at her when he saw her sitting on the ground, holding a beat up looking sword.

"What the…?"

"It… it… your eye… Inuyasha… it came from your eye!"


	11. Fox Fire

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Eleven: Fox Fire

"Haaa!"

Inuyasha screams as he slices the demon in half. He turns to Kagome with a smirk she had never seen before. She was beginning to worry that he was enjoying his new sword just a bit too much.

A cry of rage caught Kagome's attention. Turning quickly she saw a bear demon shake with rage and begin to charge towards her, promising her death with his eyes. Kagome let an arrow fly. When it actually hit the target and the demon fell she was sporting a smirk of her own.

She still wasn't able to use her special arrows, however. They guessed that she probably had to be a certain level to use different arrows. It made sense, a little irksome though.

"We've been traveling for days," Kagome said as she reached down and picked up the gold. "Hey, look! We've got another feather! Yay!" She put the items in her pack. "Do you think…"

Inuyasha turned from sheathing his blade, concerned with his companion's sudden silence. "What? What's wrong? Kagome, are you ok?"

"I feel something." She puts her hand to her chest, looking off into the distance. "I can't explain it. It feels warm, it's calling me."

"Calling you?" Inuyasha strained to hear anything unusual. "I don't hear nuthin."

"Let's go find it."

Inuyasha was skeptical. What if it was a trap? "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

She looked at him. "I am positive. We have to go."

With a curt nod Inuyasha scooped her up and began to race in the direction she indicated. He trusted her instincts. It wasn't as far as they had worried it might be. Soon they saw the flashes of light in the sky.

"There," Kagome said. "We have to go there!"

Lighting lights up the sky, and thunder booms so loudly that Kagome had to hold her hands over her ears. She couldn't imagine how loud it must seem to her dog demon friend with the super hearing.

"Are you sure we hafta go this way?" Inuyasha yells.

Kagome yells back, "Yes! I'm positive!"

Since she didn't have super hearing, she couldn't make out what his last remark was. It probably wasn't a bad thing since it wasn't a particular friendly phrase.

She was about to ask what he said when she noticed that his ears just perked up.

"It's Shippo!" he yelled so she could hear him. "Let's go!"

With speed that rivaled the lightening flashing around them, Inuyasha raced into the valley towards their youngest friend.

The little fox kit was huddling in the cracks of some fallen rocks, just out of reach of the two demons. Tears were streaming down his face. A large hand reached in and finally caught hold of his tail. He was pulled up and held in front of a huge bald headed demon. He slumped in defeat.

He was too tired to yell 'foxfire' one more time. Just before he gave up, he was yanked out of the demons hands.

Inuyasha dumped Kagome and Shippo unceremoniously onto the ground and pulled out his sword.

"Time to kill a couple demons." He cracked his knuckles and lunged at them.

Kagome looked down at the trembling kit. He looked like he was in shock. Gently she picked him up and held him like she would a baby.

"Shippo?" She called softly. "Shippo, are you okay?"

Finally his eyes focused and he saw her.

"Kagome!" She held him as he cried.

Looking up she noticed that Inuyasha had not quite won the battle. It was unusual, since Inuyasha usually disposed of enemies rather quickly. Unfortunately, in THIS battle it looked like he was just barely hanging in there.

"These two are tougher than the others!" Kagome yells to Inuyasha.

"Oh REALLY?"

He brought his blade down, only to have it blocked. This time the enemy did something none of the others had done before. It started to fly. Sure they fought demons that flew earlier in the game, but never one who went from a land walker to a flyer. And he was using some weird little object, like a horseless chariot, to fly with.

"There's something different about them!"

Inuyasha swung again, but the blade did no more than cut off a few hairs of the handsome long-haired demons.

"Save the chatter AND FIGHT!"

Kagome glared. But she knew that he wasn't going to listen to any more of her warnings. So she picked up her bow and notched an arrow. She hit the bald headed demon with the arrow. Her rump hit the ground as she fell in surprise. The arrow didn't faze him one bit. In fact, he was looking at it like it was a neat piece of new jewelry. It also had one rather bad side effect… it drew his attention away from Inuyasha, and onto Kagome.

With a gulp Kagome jumped to her feet and grabbed Shippo. The wailing kit was in no shape to fight, and she couldn't fight AND protect him, so she had to find a place to stash her young friend. Plus get away from the demon barreling down on them.

Inuyasha watched as Kagome took Shippo and ran. _Good girl, now I can focus on fighting._ Which he did. Well, at least up until he heard the girl scream.

The bald demon was holding Kagome by her hair three feet off the ground. He opened his mouth wide, preparing to enjoy his meal. Shippo was on top of the demons head biting it, but wasn't even noticed.

_There's no time! I can't get to her in time!_ Inuyasha was close to panicking. Would a feather bring her back if she was bitten in half?

With a roar Inuyasha threw his sword. The demon he was fighting laughed then lunged at him, ripping through Inuyasha's side. The dog demon dropped to the ground, holding his side. Glancing past the demon he was fighting he saw Kagome and Shippo standing over the now dead demon with a sword in his belly.

He was a bit irked, however, to see that Kagome hadn't taken Shippo and ran. She was walking up to the dead demon and inspecting its head. Then, to make matters worse, she reached down and touched it! Inuyasha growled loudly made a mental note to yell at her about that.

Suddenly the demon in front of him noticed his fallen brother and went into a rage. A bolt of lightening barely missed Inuyasha, who thanked the gaming gods for giving him good reflexes. He swore he'd never choose one of those strong but slow players ever again.

The pain in his side was becoming unbearable. He knew he was loosing a lot of blood. He also knew that he couldn't dodge the attacks forever.

_Blades of Blood._

Those three words suddenly popped into his head. Instinct took over and Inuyasha dipped his claws into his blood and swiped at the demon.

"Blades of Blood!"

The droplets of blood formed tiny blades as sharp as razors. They sliced at the demon in front of him. Unfortunately, the cuts were not fatal. Painful and plentiful, but not fatal. He dropped to the ground again. _What was THAT?_ He looked at his claws in wonder. When his nose picked up a familiar scent he looked up in terror.

_Kagome is coming_! Sure enough, the girl in the sailor style outfit was racing towards him with his sword. Inuyasha might have been amused at how odd the sight looked if his heart wasn't trying to leap out of his chest. He tried to yell at her to stay back, but his throat closed up. _NO!_

The demon's attention was now on her and he let loose a powerful lightning attack.

The loss of blood had slowed down Inuyasha's reflexes. He couldn't reach her before the bolt of lightning did. His eyes were wide as he saw her, with Shippo in her arms, engulfed in a blindingly bright light.

He saw red.

Rage. That's the only thing he could feel. He couldn't see anything or hear anything except for the blood raging through his body, taking control. His body was on fire.

When Inuyasha finally came to his senses, he was standing beside Kagome's limp body. As he reached out to touch her he noticed that his hands were dripping with blood that he was sure wasn't his. A quick glance around let him know that the demon had been disposed of. Messily.

"Kagome…" His throat hurt and his eyes burned. He dropped to the ground and picked up her body, holding it close. The grief was almost overwhelming. He touched his forehead to hers. "Kagome… I'm so sorry…"

His heart about stopped when he saw her eyelids flutter open.

"Ack!" He screeched and scooted back.

Slowly Kagome sat up and looked around. She wrinkled her nose at the sight before her. Blood and guts were all over the place, including Inuyasha's claws. There wasn't time to make a remark about it before those blood soaked claws were pulling her in for a tight hug that nearly cut off her oxygen supply.

"I thought you were dead," he whispered.

Kagome smiled, hugging him back. "Would've been a good time to try out those phoenix feathers, huh?"

Inuyasha pushed her back and gave her a little shove. "Don't even joke about that!"

Even though Inuyasha had released her, she felt something clutching her. She looked down to see a little russet ball of fur.

"You okay, Shippo?" she asked.

"You came."

"Keh, of course we did."

Once again, the little kit started bawling. Kagome held him and stroked his hair, unsure of what else to do. She looked at Inuyasha for advice, but he simply shrugged his shoulders and looked the other way.

Continuing to stroke Shippo's hair/fur, Kagome looked around the battlefield. Something was wrong.

"It's all bloody and gory."

"Keh, I killed the demons, didn't I?"

"Yeah, which, by the way, was very very scary how you did it. But usually the enemies disappear. They don't stick around."

Cocking his head to one side, Inuyasha studied the remains of the demon. "Well, the bald one disappeared. After you touched it, anyhow. And speaking of that, ARE YOU FREAKING OUT OF YOUR MIND? He could have still been alive and skewered you!"

"Hmmm…" Kagome thought, completely ignoring the admonishment, "That's right. He did. I pulled this out of his head." She opened up her palm to show him what she found. It was a tiny pink piece of stone. "When I pulled it out, it was black. After I held it for a minute it turned pink. This is what I was feeling."

"What?"

"The feeling I had that I was being pulled, remember? This is what was pulling me. And I think that other demon has one too. I can feel it."

Kagome stood up, still holding Shippo, and walked over to the largest pile of remains.

"Ug. Its right there near that eyeball…."

Inuyasha sighed. "Do you want ME to get it?"

She put on her brightest smile and her biggest puppy dog eyes. "Would you?"

With a little guidance, Inuyasha found the little black stone. He plucked it out of, where, he wasn't sure quite what that was, anatomy wasn't his strong subject in school, then gave it to Kagome. He watched in fascination as it slowly turned pink.

"I think this is the Shikon jewel, or at least part of it." Kagome said. She pulled out the necklace her mother, her computer simulated mother, had given her. "Mama gave me the first shard with this necklace. I didn't know what it was then, but now I do." She sighed heavily. "I wonder if all the boss battles will be this messy. Or if they will all have shards."

Inuyasha shrugged. "Dunno. Guess we'll find out though." He looked down at Kagome's new furry accessory. "Do you plan on letting go of her anytime soon, runt?"

"They were killed."

Kagome sat down. "Who was killed?"

Shippo sobbed, "My parents, they were killed!"

Inuyasha swore colorfully and sat down next to Kagome. "In the game?"

The kit nodded. "But it was so real. It looked like them and sounded like them." He sniffled. "It even smelled like them."

Kagome rested her head on Shippo's. "I'm so sorry, Shippo. The same happened with my mother. It was really hard to not think of her as real. It felt real."

"They made me watch. Papa was skinned." Shippo burst into tears again, this time Kagome joined him.

They cried together for awhile. Inuyasha got angrier and angrier with each tear that fell.

"Naraku is sick. This game is sick. He has a lot to answer for." Inuyasha growled. The game was being taken too far. "Quit!" he yelled. "End Game!" Nothing happened. "Game Over!" Nothing. "Someone pull the plug and get us out of here!"

Wiping her eyes, Kagome stood up. She extended her hand to the dog demon to help him up. Holding onto Shippo she started towards the east.

"Where ya going?"

Kagome looked back at Inuyasha.

"Well… I felt another shard in this direction… but I'm thinking our first stop should be some water. Man, you stink!"

With a rude gesture, Inuyasha stormed off in the direction of the river they had passed earlier in the day.


	12. Wind Tunnel

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twelve: Wind Tunnel

"I saw my father swallowed up by a hole in his hand. As soon as he disappeared, that same hole appeared in mine. It was sucking everything in; trees, rocks, even some unfortunate small animals. I was lucky that there was a priest nearby who had this glove and rosary to keep the wind tunnel closed."

"It's not luck, Miroku. It's part of the stupid game."

"Be nice, Inuyasha." Kagome scowled at Inuyasha before smiling towards Miroku. "At least we found each other. I'm glad we happened to be traveling along the same path."

"As am I." Miroku turned his most charming smile on Kagome while scooting a little closer. "It is good to see a friendly face."

Inuyasha growled. "If that hand goes even one inch closer to her butt then I'm going to rip your arm off at the shoulder and beat you to death with it."

Looking down, Kagome sees the monk's hand a little too close to her rump for comfort.

"You wound me, Inuyasha. I am but a humble servant of Buddha, I would never think to defile…"

"Save it, lecher. You're a pervert and we all know it." Kagome and Shippo nodded in agreement.

Miroku sighed. "I am so misunderstood."

Kagome rolled her eyes and went to her backpack. That morning she had made the buy of her life. A sleeping bag. A nice fluffy warm sleeping bag. She smiled dreamily. No more sleeping on leaves and sticks. And though it was sweet of Inuyasha to let her cover herself in his haori during the middle of the night, it really didn't keep her warm enough. Especially the toes.

As she spread out her sleeping bag she thought of the changes of the past several days. The group had finally figured out that they were slowly leveling up. There would be a strange feeling that started with the toes and worked its way up. At first they had dismissed it as an adrenaline rush. Inuyasha had been the first to learn a new command, Blades of Blood. Shippo learned his first transformation spell, which is what the leaves were for. He could turn his spinning top into a giant spinning top. And Kagome finally got to use one of her cool new arrows, the poison arrow. Okay, so it missed… but she was still able to use it.

She smiled. And that morning they found Miroku wandering down the path they were on. It had been a happy reunion. After hugs and tears (all by Kagome), the group started traveling towards the village Inuyasha smelled.

Best of all, the town had a shop that had sleeping bags for sale.

Miroku had been curious as to why she wanted a sleeping bag when inns were readily available. She gave him a pleasant smile and tossed him a sleeping bag of his own. In addition she picked up two more bags, one for Sango and one for Koga when they found them. Inuyasha refused a bag of his own, and Shippo said it would be too wasteful since he was so small. Besides, they were demons and didn't get cold.

"Kagome, you can't keep letting the brat sleep with you." Inuyasha dropped down from his usual spot in the treetop and landed in front of her, startling her slightly. He wore one of his most menacing frowns. Unfortunately for him, none of his frowns or scowls ever seemed to work on Kagome.

"Don't be stupid, Inuyasha. It's completely harmless. And it makes him feel better to sleep with me."

"He's not a baby, Kagome! He's fourteen years old! He only LOOKS like a baby!"

Kagome harrumphed and crawled into the sleeping bag, turning her back to him. Shippo turned and made a face at Inuyasha, and hummed the tune to 'We are the Champions' soft enough so only the doggie ears could pick it up, which only irritated Inuyasha more.

"Miroku isn't the only pervert here," he growled quietly, knowing the fox kit could hear him just fine.

Shippo turned and gave him a slightly evil smile.

The exchange between demons was confusing but entertaining for Miroku. He was thankful that he wasn't alone anymore. The traveling and fighting had been wearing him out. Unfortunately, he didn't have a nifty backpack like Kagome that could hold healing potions, food and four sleeping bags all without getting larger or heavier. He had to rely on making it from one inn to the next for healing and nourishment. Frankly, he was a little surprised he made it this far.

He frowned, if only Sango and Koga were here, then the team would be complete.

_Sango. I hope you're okay_. Miroku thought about the difficulties that he had on his journey alone. It had been difficult, and lonely. After the first couple of days, he had even forgotten that this was a game. Seeing his friends again had lightened his heart considerably. It was what he needed to remind himself of who and where he was.

They had talked a lot during dinner, catching each other up on all the adventures that they had gone through since the game began. Both Kagome and Shippo had terrible experiences in the game, losing family in a horrible. As did Miroku. But the thought of Sango having to endure that pain made the monk sick to his stomach. _Please be okay._

"Go to sleep, monk!" Inuyasha demanded grumpily from the tree.

Miroku smiled. Yes, it was nice to be with friends again.

The next morning the group of four finally got a chance to fight together. Well, they sort of fought together. Miroku opened up his wind tunnel and sucked in all the enemies. He was quite proud of himself as he wrapped the beads firmly around his hand. After the fight, Kagome and Shippo picked up all the dropped items while Miroku bragged a bit to an irritated dog demon.

The following fight had a very similar ending. As did the third. Miroku leveled up on that one. Shippo wondered if it was going to be Kagome or Inuyasha who snapped first.

"MIROKU!"

It was Kagome.

"YOU CAN'T HOG THE WHOLE BATTLE, YOU JERK!"

Inuyasha snickered. Two seconds ago he was ready to slice and dice the monk for stealing all the fun, but it was equally entertaining to watch him quiver in fear in front of a very ticked off young woman in a schoolgirl outfit. He wondered if it was bad that he was hoping it might come to blows. He also wondered what his chances were of getting some popcorn to watch the show.

"HOW DO YOU EXPECT THE REST OF US TO LEVEL UP IF YOU DON'T LET US FIGHT!" Her hands were clinched into fists at her sides. But the most interesting thing was the pink flames that started flaring up around her feet.

Inuyasha and Shippo stopped their laughter and watched in awe as the pink flame grew larger and larger.

"Cool."

Inuyasha nodded. _Yeah, kinda cool, but also kinda scary. We're not supposed to be able to use our powers outside of battle._

Of course Miroku apologized profusely, and promised to save using the wind tunnel only in case of emergency or after everyone had a chance to fight. When the pink flames finally died down and Kagome was back to smiles, he breathed a sigh of relief. Briefly he wondered if she had some sort of hormonal imbalance. But being the smart guy that he was, he decided to keep that question to himself.

Shippo hopped up onto Kagome's shoulder as she picked up her backpack and started in the last direction she felt a jewel shard.

"That was pretty cool, Kagome."

"Hmm? What was?"

Shippo looked at Inuyasha, who just shrugged.

"I've been wondering…" Miroku said as they walked. "Is that outfit you're wearing magical as well, Kagome?"

The girl turned and looked at him blankly. "I don't think so, why?"

"Because the skirt is so short, and not once have I seen your underwear."

Okay, so he wasn't THAT smart. He was lucky that his skull was fairly resilient and he healed quickly. He couldn't decide if Kagome or Inuyasha hit harder.


	13. Transformations and Purification

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Thirteen: Transformations and Purification

"Miroku," Kagome purred seductively, moving closely to the monk, "I think I have something in my eye… could you check for me?" She batted her eyes prettily as she sat next to him on a fallen tree.

"Uh…" Miroku looked at her then looked at the dog demon. "No… no…I don't think so... sorry."

She batted her eyes again and leaned in closer. "Please…"

Miroku backed up a few inches, not liking one little bit the way that Inuyasha was rolling on the ground in near hysterical laughter. He was more than a little uncomfortable. Yes, Kagome was a beautiful girl. And generally Miroku was always up for flirting with a beautiful girl. With the blatant signals the girl in front of him was giving, she was more than receptive.

But she was a bit too close for comfort. It wasn't Kagome's unusually flirtatious mood that was bothering him, it was Inuyasha's unusually jovial mood. Usually when Miroku got too close to Kagome Inuyasha would do his impression of a rabid dog. Something was very… unsettling.

"I'd really rather not."

Kagome pouted prettily, her bottom lip sticking out slightly while she turned sad puppy dog eyes on him. "You think I'm… sniffle… ugly… don't you?"

Miroku put his hands up in front of him protectively. "Of course not! But…"

She took his flailing hands and held them close to her before leaning into him. He could actually feel her breath on his face. If he leaned forward even an inch their lips would be touching. "You think I'm pretty?"

"Uh…" Miroku was close to panicking. The wrong answer could get him killed. "Yes, very pretty, but…"

"You think I'm attractive, don't you?" she whispered softly, nuzzling her nose against his.

With a screech not even remotely masculine, Miroku jumped back, tripping over the fallen yellow backpack and landing harshly on the ground. "Don't DO that!"

With a feral smile, Kagome dropped to her knees beside him, prowling like a jungle cat towards the frightened monk. She leaned in closely and whispered into his ear. The monk turned white before turning bright red. With a swear word one doesn't hear often coming from a monk, he jumped to his feet and dashed out of sight.

Kagome laughed and turned to face the howling dog demon.

"That was fun!" She grinned.

Inuyasha wiped the tears from his eyes as he tried to control his laughter. "Oh yeah, that was the best thing I think I've seen since we started this game, Shippo."

"By far the coolest trick I've learned."

"Definitely. Though if Kagome finds out, she may…" he stopped himself from saying his usual phrase 'skin you alive' to the still sensitive fox kit, and instead said, "…rip your head off and spit down your throat."

With a pop and a puff of smoke, Kagome turned back into a mischievous little fox demon child. He grabbed at the leaf floating down from his head, but it disappeared as soon as he touched it. He shrugged. It was definitely worth wasting one of his magical leaves to see Miroku squirm like that. _Serves him right for always flirting with Kagome._

Inuyasha turned his head towards the direction Miroku just ran. Kagome was coming. He heard her say hi to Miroku. He chuckled when he heard Miroku's answering shriek. Within moments Kagome entered the clearing still drying her hair from her bath.

"What's wrong with Miroku?"

Inuyasha and Shippo both burst out laughing, completely confusing the miko. She shrugged off their strange behavior and went to her backpack to pick out her newest favorite item she bought. A hairbrush. It had cost almost as much as a new sword. The boys had fought her over the purchase, but they didn't have a chance pitting themselves against a girl and her hygiene.

_I'd pay twice that much for some bubble bath,_ she sighed as she brushed her hair. _I miss bubble baths._

Once her hair was sufficiently dry and brushed, Kagome returned her precious item to her backpack. She pulled out a few containers and a small pot (which had also cost them a pretty penny).

"Ramen!" Inuyasha and Shippo cried happily as she set the containers down.

Kagome rolled her eyes. _You'd think I was serving them steak or lobster or chocolate cake. MMmmmm… chocolate cake…._

The chore of making dinner had fallen on Kagome. They had tried taking turns… but that didn't work out very well. Shippo was a bit too small to hold the pot of water and pour into the small cups. Inuyasha never let them sit long enough and always ended up scalding his tongue and eating crunchy noodles. And Miroku… well, Kagome suspected that Miroku intentionally messed up to get out of cooking. How many times can a person accidentally set the containers on fire?

Frankly, Kagome was getting a little sick of Ramen. She prayed that in addition to bubble bath that one of these shops would start selling granola bars or even beef jerky. Anything besides those noodles! How can the boys eat them every single day and still enjoy them like they haven't eaten them in ages?

"Miroku!" Kagome yelled a few minutes later. "Dinner!"

A red faced Miroku finally emerged from the trees. He nervously took his cup of noodles from the girl, making sure not to touch her, and sat as far away from her as possible. It was unusual that he didn't touch her since he was always looking for an excuse to, but Kagome didn't question it. She never could understand boys. What she didn't understand was the funny looks he kept sending her way and the snickering of the two demons. _Men!_

Determined to ignore her companions, Kagome focused on how the noodles. She couldn't believe that they weren't real. _I wonder how they do it._

Miroku was having a difficult time keeping himself from staring at Kagome. The two demons were getting annoying though with their random bursts of laughter. He couldn't decide what to do about Kagome. It wasn't like her to be so… so… forward… and in front of Inuyasha! Should he encourage it? But what about Sango? He thought he had been fairly clear in his interest of the demon slayer. Why would Kagome make a move on him when he was interested in her friend?

Just as he was about to pluck up the courage to confront her about her behavior, he noticed Shippo setting down his noodle container and moving behind Kagome and pulling out one of his magical leaves. The fox kit twirled the leave between his fingers before placing it on his head.

Poof!

Standing behind Kagome was… Kagome!

Miroku narrowed his eyes and ground his teeth angrily. He couldn't stop himself. The normally calm and peace loving monk launched himself at Kagome, the standing Kagome. Unfortunately, the sitting Kagome happened to be in his way.

She became a very angry sitting Kagome when he spilled her noodles all over her nice clean clothes.

"MIROKU!"

Kagome stomped off back towards the hot spring for another bath, grumbling about stupid men and the unfairness of having to clean clothes even in a stupid game. That left Inuyasha and Shippo to tend to Miroku's wounds.

The demons weren't forgiven as the group started off again the next morning. Kagome hadn't quite forgiven the monk for causing her to head off for another bath just when she was ready to go to sleep. Not to mention having to walk around in slightly damp clothes. All in all, half the group was in a surly mood. The other half was tickled and prone to outbursts of chuckles however.

Miroku refused to apologize to Kagome. He would have to explain why he did what he did, that THAT wasn't going to happen any time soon.

Shippo and Inuyasha refused to apologize to Miroku. Because, well, it was just too dang entertaining and they weren't sorry one little bit.

"I'm hungry!" complained Shippo.

Kagome sighed heavily. Were they ever NOT hungry? She wondered briefly if they weren't eating enough at meal times? Maybe they weren't eating the right foods? A steady diet of Ramen just can't be good for anyone! Before she could suggest looking for some edible plants to go along with lunch, she felt the funny feeling in her stomach.

"There's a shard nearby!"

Lunch was postponed as they took off in pursuit of the shard carrying demon.

"Whoa," said Miroku. "She's HOT!"

The demon was a tall, beautiful woman with large black eyes. And antennas. She wore yellow and black and had a long stinger at the base of her spine. Alongside her were four flying wasps.

Before Shippo could use a foxfire defensive shield he was stung by one of the wasps. Immediately he fell from battle. Kagome searched her bag for an antidote. Shippo took it from her and drank. Unfortunately, he still felt sick and was unable to continue battling. Kagome was just glad that they had bought some antidotes, she decided that they would buy a lot more at the next town they came to.

Inuyasha swung at the wasp queen. "Die!"

But she was fast. In fact, no one even saw her move. One moment she was in front of Inuyasha's blade, and the next she was behind Kagome.

"Kagome!" he screamed as he lunged in her direction.

But while his attention was on the girl, one of the wasps took the opportunity to sting the dog demon. He continued his swing and managed to hit the wasp queen. But when he hit the ground he felt as if his insides were burning. The poison was spreading. Kagome reached for her bag, but Inuyasha was already across the clearing swinging at the queen. Another wasp stung him. He fell to his knees.

"Don't just stand there, Miroku! Use your wind tunnel!"

Miroku hit the wasp he was fighting once more with his staff before standing back and lifting the beads that contained his most powerful attack.

"Wind Tunnel!"

Three of the wasps were sucked in. As soon as they entered the hole in his hand, Miroku felt sick. He closed the wind tunnel and dropped to the ground. Kagome raced to him and felt his head.

"You're burning up!"

"Poison…" Miroku said right before he passed out.

Quickly Kagome gave him the antidote that she had been holding for Inuyasha. Tears leaked out of her eyes when she had to use another precious bottle of antidote, the first only drops made it into his throat.

Inuyasha's colorful expression echoed across the clearing. Kagome looked up as gasped. The three wasps that had disappeared into the wind tunnel had been replaced by three more. The sword sliced one of them nicely in two, but in only moments another one was on the field.

"They regenerate…"

"No kidding, Kagome."

The miko turned to the dog demon who had appeared at her side and opened her mouth to make a scathing reply. Her jaw snapped shut. Inuyasha was pale. Beads of sweat were rolling down his face, his brown damp. His hands were trembling as he held on to his sword like a crutch.

Before she could reach for her bag, Inuyasha shoved her to the ground. A wasp narrowly missed her. It had, however, torn a rather large hole in the arm of her shirt. Grabbing her bag she dodged a wasp and ducked behind a boulder. She reached in and grabbed an antidote. _Inuyasha won't make it through the fight if he doesn't drink this soon, demon or no demon._ She really didn't want to try out the effectiveness of the phoenix feather. Tucking the bottle into the wasteband of her skirt, Kagome dashed back out onto the battlefield. She took an arrow out of her quiver and shot one of the wasps.

"We need to kill the queen!" She yelled, "It's the only way to stop the wasps!"

She wasn't positive, but it made sense. After all, she had played several boss battles in the past who kept regenerating annoying little flunkies.

She waited for Inuyasha's smart aleck remark or a grunt in reply. But it didn't come. Frantically Kagome looked around. Inuyasha was kneeling on the ground, barely keeping himself from falling by holding onto his sword deeply embedded in the ground. Without even a pause or a glance around, Kagome ran to him. Tears flooded her face as she raced. Inuyasha was dying.

A wasp seemed to be racing her to the dog demon. Luckily Kagome was a few steps ahead. She tackled Inuyasha to the ground and immediately put the bottle to his lips. As soon as she saw him swallow she smiled.

"AAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

A scream was ripped through her throat as a stinger tore through her side like a steel blade. She continued to scream as the poison burned her from the inside out. It felt like acid! Quickly she reached for her bag. It wasn't there. Her vision blurred as she saw her bag… all the way across the clearing. She looked down at Inuyasha, but he was not yet strong enough to move.

The queen wasp cackled and turned her gaze on Kagome as three more wasps appeared, now totaling seven. Their intent was clear. They were coming after her and Inuyasha. She coughed, feeling her lungs begin to fill with liquid. She could feel that she was dying from the poison.

"We won't die!" Kagome yelled as she shakily stood to her feet, wiping some blood from her lip from when she coughed. "I won't let you kill us!"

Her trembling fingers drew an arrow from her quiver. Narrowing her gaze Kagome aimed. _I will protect my friends!_ A warm feeling started in her belly. It was different than the burning she felt earlier from the poison. This feeling felt safe. It felt good. Safe. In fact, it felt pretty amazing.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha looked up at his friend. She was glowing pink! Her entire body glowed, as did the bow and arrow that she held. Even the ground where she stood was tinged in pink.

"Purify!" Kagome yelled as she let the arrow fly.

Three wasps disintegrated just by being close to the path of the arrow. The wasp queen had a look of surprise on her face right before the arrow hit, turning her immediately into a shower of sparkly dust.

There was a moment of pride and triumph before Kagome's eyes rolled into the back of her head and everything went black. She heard her name being called somewhere in the distance.

Naraku watches the monitor carefully. The dog demon was panicking. The antidote could not be given to the girl, only Kagome could reach into her bag. It was a situation that Naraku hadn't planned on. The girl was to be the healer and to stay in the background. Her job was to give potions and antidotes, to use barriers when she learned how to use them. He hadn't planned on her fighting. The males were supposed to be protecting HER.

"She shouldn't be able to do that," whispers Kagura.

Her employer raises an eyebrow to the woman, turning from the screen. He had momentarily forgotten that he was not alone in the room. Several employees were still around checking the machines and vital signs of the players.

"She shouldn't be able to do that! Purification is a level thirty spell! She's not even a level five yet. That's impossible!"

Naraku smiles. "I knew she was the one."

Turning back to the screen he watched the three young men kneeling helplessly by the girl. After some heated discussion, the dog demon picks the girl up and they leave the area quickly. With luck they would reach a village quickly.

_She will live._ For the first time since the game began, Naraku was worried. _She has to live._ He continued to watch the monitors.


	14. Prince of Wolves

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Fourteen: Prince of Wolves

Three days were spent in the next village. A doctor was found who would treat the wounded, but only when approached by Miroku. Inuyasha was glad that they had found the lecher. The humans would not answer him or Shippo, they would only cry "Demons!" or "Be gone!" or "Help, monsters!" or other such annoying and rather insulting comments.

On the first day the doctor healed Kagome at the clinic. The group found a place for them to rest at an inn after they left the clinic. The second and third day Inuyasha refused to let her leave her bed despite her protests that she felt fine, growling at any who tried to make him leave. Shippo was allowed to stay, but only under threat of death if he disturbed the girl at all. He had Miroku run errands and talk to villagers.

On the third day, Miroku finally found some useful information. He hurried back to the inn and opened the door to Kagome's bedroom. Technically they all shared the room, but it was understood that it was Kagome's room. The cramped quarters made the monk actually miss sleeping outdoors.

"It appears…"

Before Miroku could say another word a hand was clamped around his mouth. He felt the demonic aura behind him, threatening him subtly.

"If you wake her up, I will kill you."

Miroku nodded in understanding. They would wait until she woke up to begin talking again. No one argues with an over-protective dog demon.

Luckily they didn't have long to wait. Though Miroku suspected that Inuyasha was holding him personally responsible for waking the girl up. He made a mental note to himself to not be caught alone with the demon anytime in the near future.

"Find out anything?" Kagome managed to ask between yawns.

Miroku cleared his throat, trying to not be intimidated by the golden eyed scowl. Shippo was sending him very similar looks from the foot of the bed, not quite as effective but still a bit unsettling.

"It appears that there have been wolf demons sighted to the north."

"Koga!" exclaimed Kagome with a happy clap of the hands.

Miroku nodded, smiling at her exuberance. It was good to see her feeling good again. It will be even better to have the two sharp toothed companions finally in a good mood again. "I believe so. I have also learned that I apparently cannot purchase supplies since I have no where to put them."

Kagome giggled as she pushed the covers off of her body and swung her legs off the bed. "So… I'm the only one who can shop?"

"It appears that way."

She grinned. "So if anyone wants me to buy something special… say like… RAMEN… then they have to ask nicely?"

Three young men cringed.

"Even say the word 'please' I bet." They didn't acknowledge her, but that was ok. She was in a very good mood. She was finally feeling well, she just learned she had the upper hand when purchasing supplies, and they were going to find their fifth teammate soon. "Let's get going!"

Although Inuyasha tried to get the group to stay for one more day to give Kagome more rest, he was out-voted. He was a little grumbly about not getting his way, but was in a slightly better mood when they discovered that the store in that town had a new flavor of Ramen. Being the astute dog demon that he was, he noticed Kagome's disappointment in the store.

"Oi, wench, what's wrong?"

"Stop calling me wench, dog boy. Who said anything was wrong?"

He stood closer to her as Shippo and Miroku poked throught the store. "I can tell, it's a demon thing. Now spill it." He kept his voice low.

She sighed. "It's stupid."

"Don't care."

Blushing, Kagome scanned the items available for purchase. "I was really hoping for some shampoo or some chocolate."

Inuyasha burst out laughing, causing Miroku and Shippo to cast him curious glances. Kagome just glared at him.

She whispered, "Told ya it was stupid."

Inuyasha put his elbows on the counter and put his head in his hands, turning a little to look at her. He was relieved. "I'll get you all the chocolate you can cram down your gullet when we get out of this stupid game."

The smile she gave him nearly melted his heart, but not in the same way that the wasp's poison had threatened to a few days ago.

"Is that a promise?" It wasn't the most romantic offer that she had ever had, but it was still sweet all the same.

He grinned.

"Stop flirting and buy the stupid supplies!" Shippo jumped between them and shot Inuyasha an evil glare before turning big green baby eyes and a sweet sing song voice on Kagome. "Do they have any pocky?"

Inuyasha glared at the kit as Kagome smiled and patted his head, explaining that this shop didn't sell any sweets. _Manipulative little punk. When we get out of this game and he actually looks his age, we're going to have to have a little talk._ However, Inuyasha knew that as long as Shippo actually looked like a child, Kagome would have a difficult time seeing him as anything but a child. _Manipulative stupid game._

After the potions shop, the group went over to the weapons shop, but found nothing in their price range that they wanted. Miroku had also found a shop that sold food. Much to the demons dismay, Kagome picked some vegetables, cheese, and bread. Still no sigh of sweets. She tried not to think about how they were stored in her back without spoiling. _One more thing to chalk up to game magic_, she guessed.

Kagome clapped her hands together and walked with a bounce in her step. Soon their whole group would be back together. First Koga, then they would find Sango. "I can't wait to find Koga!"

"I can…" mumbled Shippo and Inuyasha in unison.

Two hours later of walking uphill, Kagome's enthusiasm had been dampened quite a bit. Too bad no one on the team had any teleportation skills that could be used. Or wings. They were tired and sweaty and slightly dehydrated. But they only had a few more bottles of water left from their shopping expedition, and they wanted to use it sparingly.

Halway up the mountain Kagome felt the familiar feeling in her stomach.

"Shards are nearby! And they are coming quickly!" She looked around. The group was walking along a very narrow path up the mountain, too narrow to walk in anything but single file. In fact, in some areas they would have to walk with their backs against the side of the mountains and they would be forced to shuffle along sideways.

"How fast?" asked Inuyasha, looking around for their opponent. "Do you hear the music? It seemed that in addition to being the only one to shop and retrieve anything from her backpack, Kagome was the only one who could hear the music when enemies were about to attack.

"No. No music. It's different from other fights. There's no music at all, but I can feel the shards approaching." She glanced nervously at the path. "How are we going to fight without falling to our deaths? It's a long way down you know."

Before anyone could answer her, Kagome found herself swept up into the arms of a tornado. Dizzy and disoriented, Kagome looked up at her kidnapper. Ice blue eyes searched her own.

"Koga?"

Happily Kagome threw her arms around her friend. She was so glad that they had found him. Or he found them. Either way, she was glad to have her teammate back.

"We've been looking all over for you!" After barely a moments hesitation, the wolf demon returned Kagome's embrace.

At first the wolf demon didn't recognize her. He stopped his race up the hill and looked down at the group of cursing young men nearly half a mile below them. After laughing at them, Koga turned his attention back to the girl still in his grasp. He cocked his head to one side.

"I know you."

Kagome smiled. "Yes, of course you do, Koga. It's me! Kagome!"

The young miko was a bit uncomfortable since he had not yet let her go. She didn't want to seem rude pulling away, but she couldn't very well keep on hugging him. So she let her arms drop, hoping he would drop his. No such luck. In fact, he seemed to just hold her even closer.

Closing his eyes, Koga dropped his head to her neck took a deep breath. If Kagome didn't know any better, she would say that he was trying to memorize her smell. She felt the shards presence. Looking down she saw a glow. He had jewel shards in his legs. She wondered how he got a hold of them. Surely he had an interesting story behind that, hopefully over dinner he would share it.

"We've been looking for you. Inuyasha, Shippo, and Miroku are with me too."

The wolf demon glared at the group who was rapidly catching up to them. He growled at them and ordered his men to attack. That was when Kagome noticed the pack of wolves and wolf demons at the top of the hill. She screamed to warn her friends, but it was too late. They were under attack.

"What are you doing? They are our friends!"

Koga gave her a smirk and held her tightly. "You are mine, Kagome."

"No, Koga…"

"You are my woman. I won't let them take you from me."

Kagome tried to push her would be suitor away from her, but it was no good. "Look, Koga, I'm flattered, really… but I'm not your woman."

"I am Koga, Prince of the Wolf Demon Tribe, and I have claimed you as my own."

"Uh... Koga…" She looked again into his eyes, and gasped. He truly believed that he was the prince of the tribe. "Koga… this is just a game. You're playing a character. Your name is Koga Wolfe, you're a college student working on a degree in English. Remember? Please remember!" she pleaded with him.

For a moment he looked confused, then he looked angry. "Don't try to confuse me with your words, woman. I am Koga, Prince of the Wolf Demon Tribe."

"No… you're not. There are no demons. This is only a game. You are a college student who plays online games for fun. You have a girlfriend named Ayame. You…"

"SHUT UP!" His grip on her arms tightened painfully, claws digging into her skin. "I am the prince of the wolf demons. You are MINE! And I will have REVENGE on that DOG for slaughtering half of my tribe. My FAMILY!"

"Who? Inuyasha?"

Just as the first drop of blood trickled down her arm from where Koga had accidentally cut her, she heard a thunderous cry from below. In awe she watched as Inuyasha flew from below the edge of the cliff and landed in front of them. His golden eyes blazed as they scanned her, looking for the blood she knew he could smell. When he saw the blood streaking down her arm he flew into a rage.

Koga threw the girl from him as Inuyasha advanced. Instead of landing on the hard dirt, Kagome found herself in another man's arms, looking up into friendly violet eyes.

"Thanks, Miroku."

"Anytime." Quickly he set her up on her feet and resumed his fight against the wolves.

Kagome took a shaky breath then erected a barrier to keep the wolves from getting any closer to her friends. Her eyes were shut tight, concentrating on keeping the barrier up. Snarling and growling was coming from the two fighting demons. She could hear fists landing and claws tearing.

_This isn't right. They are friends. We are all friends! _

"STOP!" she cried out.

The fighting continued. Opening her eyes she glared at Inuyasha. Using the rest of her energy she cast another barrier on him, making it impossible for him to touch the wolf demon or to be touched.

"Hiding behind a woman are you, mutt?" the wolf demon taunted.

"I'm going to kill you!"

Koga touched the barrier, only to be shocked by it. He gave Inuyasha a smirk. "I will be back for what's mine." With a curt call to the wolves, Koga disappeared in a swirling cloud of dust.

The barriers fell.

Inuyasha was beyond angry. Koga had tried taking Kagome. Koga had HURT Kagome. She was BLEEDING because of HIM. And she had the NERVE to protect him! His blood was screaming at him to hunt down the wolf demon and to kill him slowly and painfully. If he had been able to use his sword outside of battle, then the wolf would surely laying in front of him in pieces. Many many pieces.

"KAGOME!" he yelled, intent on telling her once and for all just who was in charge of this little expedition. He turned to find Kagome laying in Miroku's arms, once again unconscious. Within a heartbeat he was by her side.

"Is she ok? Is she hurt? Quit touching her you pervert!" Inuyasha took Kagome away from Miroku with a snarl.

Attempting to hide a chuckle, Miroku put his best offended face on before answering the dog demon. "She was protecting us with her barrier. Then she created a second barrier to keep you and our mutual friend from killing one another. I believe that she used too much energy. She is unhurt, merely sleeping."

Shippo hopped up onto Inuyasha's shoulder and peered down at Kagome. "Do you think she will be okay?"

"Don't be stupid." Inuyasha held her close and stalked away towards a tree with shade.

Everything was dark, though a little fuzzy around the edges. Kagome moaned. She felt soooo tired and a little achy. She wanted to sleep, but couldn't seem to get comfortable enough. It felt as if someone had sucked all the energy out of her body. Even though she was uncomfortable, she might have been able to get some sleep if it wasn't for the voices arguing loudly.

"We must wake her up, Inuyasha!"

The following curse words made Kagome wince. "I TOLD you that we are letting her sleep, monk!"

"We can reach the next village by dark if we wake her up and start on her way."

"No!"

"Stop being so unreasonable, Inuyasha. I'll wake her up if …. OUCH! Did you just bite me, Shippo?"

Kagome giggled. She couldn't help it. She opened her eyes to see Inuyasha sitting at her side with his arms folded in front of him, hands tucked into the sleeves of his shirt. Just beyond him was a very disgruntled looking Miroku with a fox kit hanging by his teeth on his arm.

"You okay?" Inuyasha asked as he helped her sit up.

"Yeah… just tired."

Shippo let go of Miroku and jumped into her lap, hugging her stomach. "We were sooooo worried!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and just barely resisted thumping the kit on the head. Even he had to admit that the kid looked to cute to thump. _He's not a kid, he's fourteen years old, _he reminded himself.With a glare, Inuyasha picked the kit up off of Kagome's stomach and threw him over his shoulder. He didn't really care where he landed.

"Let's get going, wench."

"So help me, Inuyasha, you better stop calling me that."

He gave her a grin as he pulled her to her feet. "I'm just getting into character." He laughed until he saw her face turn serious and sad.

"Koga got into character… just a bit too much." Kagome looked up to see all of her friends watching her. "He really truly believes he is the prince of the wolf demons now. And I think that he thinks that Inuyasha killed half of his tribe. The game convinced him. I saw it in his eyes."

Miroku cleared his throat and fell into step beside Kagome. "I think I can understand that. While I was traveling alone… I too began to feel that this was my true life. I even had flashes of memories of what my life here had been. It was real. It feels real. If you hadn't found me… then I would have been just as convinced that my role here was my real life."

Kagome put a reassuring hand on Miroku's shoulder.

"Do you think we will be able to de-brainwash him?" Shippo asked, hopping up onto Kagome's shoulder.

Kagome gave him a sad smile. "I hope so."

Together they began walking towards the next village. Each one lost in their own thoughts about their friends and the game.

"Be safe, Sango," whispered Miroku.


	15. Sango vs Inuyasha

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Fifteen: Sango vs. Inuyasha

Female Villager in Green: I hear there is a village of demon slayers to the east.

Miko Kagome: Where? Can you tell me where?

Female Villager in Green: I hear there is a village of demon slayers to the east.

Miko Kagome: Yeah, great. Thanks.

The villagers paid no attention to her sarcasm. It was, however, the first time anyone had mentioned the demon slayers. Exterminators, like Sango. It took a little restraining to keep Kagome from heading out of the village right then and there. Much as she wanted to hurry and find her remaining friend and teammate, Kagome was finally convinced to go to the shops to stock up on supplies. They even found a new shop where their weapons could be combined and upgraded.

Once the group had food in their bellies, potions in the pack, and stronger weapons in the hands, they left the village and headed to the east.

"Do you think that this much time has really gone by?"

"What do you mean, Kagome?" asked Miroku as they passed the gate leading out of the village.

"I mean, has it really been so many weeks? Or does the game make you THINK it has been so many weeks? Just how exactly does time flow in the game anyhow?"

Inuyasha snorted, "You think too much."

"You don't think enough!" snapped Shippo, who began discussing his theory on how time may flow different for each person and how the brain processes information based on input and the 'feel' of time can differ. His explanations left the other three with blank looks however, and eventually he closed his mouth.

"Smart kid," Inuyasha murmured quietly as he walked past. "No way a LITTLE kid could think up such COMPLEX things."

Shippo's eyes widened at the comment. He glanced over at Kagome who was giving him an odd appraising look and winced.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, looking very embarrassed. "I keep forgetting you aren't really a baby. I guess the game is getting to me. Sorry Shippo. I promise I won't treat you like a little kid anymore." She blushed and set him down on the ground.

Inuyasha hummed happily with a bounce in his step as Shippo cursed at him. He clenched his tiny fists and glared at the dog demon's back. He took a deep breath, relaxed his stance, and turned big green eyes back on Kagome. Miroku chuckled at the sudden change in attitude. Inuyasha wasn't nearly as amused. Kagome was too busy being embarrassed to notice.

"I know I'm not a kid," he began, making sure to sound shy. "But my legs are really short in this body, and it is really difficult to keep up with you guys sometimes. If it wouldn't be too big of an imposition… I mean… if you wouldn't mind…" He looked down and away and kicked a pebble with his foot. "I hate asking…"

Kagome smiled in understanding. "You still want me to carry you?"

His smile was near blinding. "Oh please! I hate being such a bother. But that way I wouldn't slow us down any. And we do want to hurry and find Sango don't we?"

"Of course! It's no bother." She opened her arms and he jumped into them.

Miroku smothered a laugh at the murderous look Inuyasha was giving the fox kit, who was turned around sticking his tongue out at them. He wondered briefly if he should give Kagome a head's up on the kit's tricks. Nah. It was much too much fun to watch to risk having it spoiled.

During the next battle they fought, Miroku also noticed a difference in Shippo's fighting style. Up until this point the fox kit had been content to let Kagome protect him and do a little fighting on a weakened enemy. Now he was actually the one to jump in front of Kagome and tackled a strong boar demon on his own. Unfortunately, because he had not fought in many battles offensively, he did not have high enough stats to beat the demon and was horribly outmatched. In the end he had been reluctantly saved by Inuyasha.

Then next battle was remarkably similar. They even fought another boar demon. This time, however, Shippo had to be saved by Kagome. Miroku was beginning to feel bad for the youngest member of their group.

After the battle, as Kagome and Shippo were scouring the clearing for dropped items and money, Miroku decided he should really probably say something to him about it. If it were up to Inuyasha, the kit could be humiliated from dawn to dusk and it would still prove to be every bit as entertaining. But he had to tread carefully to make sure not to bruise the poor kid's ego more than it already was.

"You're defensive skills are impressive, Kagome." Miroku smiled at her, ignoring the sudden glare from their silver haired companion, though mentally he rolled his eyes. _Still so jealous… and I haven't flirted with Kagome in weeks… ok, days… well… hours anyhow. But that's not the point._

The girl blushed, stopping her search through the grass to look up at him. "Thank you."

"I think sometimes it is easy to forget that defensive skills are just as vital to a team as offensive skills. If we all ran into the thick of a fight like Inuyasha, then we would not last very long at all. Without your barriers and healing skills we would never have lasted as long as we have."

"HEY!" Inuyasha sputtered in rage.

Kagome smiled and stood, wiping her hands on her skirt. "That is very kind of you, Miroku. But we'd never win a fight on defensive skills alone. Without Inuyasha's fighting skills, and yours too of course, we'd never win a battle."

"You illustrate my point perfectly. Our combined skills of offensive and defensive make us an unbeatable team." He stepped towards her and grabbed her hands, only to be ripped away from her by and angry dog demon who growled at him to remind him about the 'no touching Kagome' rule they had discussed earlier. Unfazed, Miroku smiled at her again. "Though it concerns me that you are bearing the burden of supporting the defense by yourself."

She laughed. "I don't do it alone, Miroku. Shippo helps with barriers too and the illusion spells that distract enemies."

"Ah, but Kagome my dear. Have you not noticed that our young companion has decided to join in on the offensive?"

Kagome frowned at Miroku, understanding that the conversation was actually about Shippo. "Well… it IS good to have both offensive and defensive skills, Miroku. Don't try to make him feel bad about trying to strengthen himself in a new way. If you rely on just one, then you won't make a very good warrior." When Inuyasha snickered at Miroku's scolding she gave him a 'be silent or be dead' look.

"Very true, but it is also wise to have one area where you concentrate on the most. It is better to be the best at one thing, than merely average in several."

Eyes narrowed. She opened her mouth to deliver a scathing reply when she felt Shippo's hand on hers. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath. The fighting was beginning to embarrass the fox kit. He was no fool. He was a genius after all. He knew that they were fighting about him.

When she opened her eyes she forced a smile on her lips. "Thank you for the enlightening discussion," she said as she scooped up her bag.

As she passed Inuyasha she muttered a phrase about opinions and… other things… and how everyone has one. Her mood was lightened when she heard Inuyasha and Shippo snicker. Luckily Miroku was only human and his non-demon ears didn't pick up her surly and completely un-ladylike comment.

The group was silent as they walked on. Kagome was still mad at Miroku, and the death glares Miroku kept getting from everyone kept his mouth shut. The two hour long silence was shattered by a woman's war cry, and a toppling tree.

"MURDERER!" a woman's voice shouted, followed quickly by a large object whizzing over their heads.

Curious, the group took the almost invisible side path to follow the angry voice and ended up in a decimated village. The group took up battle stances as the large object flew at the group once again, Inuyasha and Miroku moving towards the front. Kagome dropped her bag and quickly put up a barrier.

A woman appeared before them through a haze of smoke. She was wearing a black form fitting outfit with pink tortoiseshell armor. Her hair was pulled up high and her eyes were ablaze. Blood covered her from almost head to toe.

"Sango?" Kagome dropped the barrier. When the other woman charged at them with a sword, she was too startled to put the barrier back up.

The demon exterminator swung her sword at Inuyasha. He was the only one the young woman could seem to see. "MURDERING DEMON!" Her swings were wild, but they were strong and vicious. If she had not been so wounded, then she might have been impossible to stop.

"Sango! It's us! What are you doing?" Kagome ran towards her.

"STOP!" Inuyasha yelled as he darted in front of her, blocking her path with his body. "She's not herself! Don't go any closer."

"She's our friend!"

Inuyasha snarled, not for an instance taking his eyes off of Sango, "She is also dangerous and is trying to kill us."

"No," Miroku disagreed. "She isn't trying to kill us. She is only trying to kill you."

Kagome took a closer look at Sango's face, and realized what he said was true. Her eyes were only following Inuyasha. She acknowledged no one else. Before she could form a single word, she was swept away and deposited behind Miroku.

"Make a barrier," Inuyasha instructed sternly. "And THIS time KEEP it up."

Although Kagome absolutely hated it when someone told her what to do, in this instance she felt it would be wise to agree. As soon as Inuyasha stepped away from her she put up a barrier around Shippo, Miroku, and herself.

"We have to help!" cried Kagome.

"Help which one?"

Kagome spared a glance at Shippo for his innocent question. Which one were they supposed to be helping? They were both friends. "We have to help them both."

"How do you propose we do that?" asked Miroku as he watched the Inuyasha lead Sango away from them.

But Kagome had no answers. All she could do was watch her two friends fight. Well, to be more accurate, Sango was fighting, Inuyasha was dodging. Then she felt the familiar tingle. There was a jewel shard nearby. The fighting had distracted her from feeling it before. Closing her eyes she concentrated on the feeling, trying to locate the shard. But it was dancing all over the place.

"Oh no…" Kagome dropped the barrier and ran towards Inuyasha. "She has a jewel shard in her back! Inuyasha! She has a jewel shard!"

Before she could get far she was tackled to the ground.

"Get OFF me, Miroku! I have to tell him about the jewel shard. It must be what is making her act so funny."

"You will get killed if you get in the middle of the battle. Sango may not be at full strength, but she is still strong enough to seriously injure you, accidental or not. And I don't feel like having our demon friend there murdering me for letting you get hurt. So put the barrier back up."

Silence startled the miko and the monk. They looked up to see Sango kneeling on the ground, gripping her bone boomerang for support. Inuyasha was watching her warily from his crouched position.

"You killed my family." Sango stood up shakily. "You MONSTER! You killed my FAMILY!" Once more she attacked.

Kagome looked up at Miroku, who was still sitting on her. "Did she just say that Inuyasha killed her family?"

"She did."

"That's impossible."

"I know."

Inuyasha finally shook himself out of silence. "Are you insane, Sango? I haven't killed anyone!"

"You lie, demon," she growled as she threw the boomerang. "I know it was you who murdered them in cold blood! You can not trick me with your lies."

Easily the dog demon knocked the weapon away like a bothersome gnat. The girl had barely enough strength to stand, much less get too much power behind her throw. Frankly, Inuyasha didn't know how she managed to even lift the thing. From the look in her eyes, however, he knew that she was planning on fighting him to the death, either his or hers.

"Sango, it's me. It's Inuyasha. We're friends."

"I am friend to no demon. I am a slayer of demons. And I will be your death."

Sango drew her sword and advanced on her enemy. She held the same glazed look in her eyes that Koga had. The look that told them that they had been too totally absorbed in the game. That the game was now their reality.

"It's a game, Sango. Just remember that this is just a game."

She spat at him as she swung again, missing his head by only inches. "Vile creature. The deaths of my loved ones may have been a game to you, but now you must deal with me. And you will not win."

Inuyasha turned pleading eyes towards Kagome, hoping she would have a better suggestion on how to get Sango to listen. But what he saw made his blood boil. _Why in the…_ he cursed viciously _is Miroku on Kagome?_ Sango all but forgotten, he was in front of the two humans in one powerful leap. He towered over Miroku and folded his arms in front of his chest, looking more menacing than the group had ever seen him.

"What. Are. You. Doing?"

Suddenly Miroku's life began flashing before his eyes as he realized just what it looked like he was doing. "Uh… heh… um… the barrier… she was running… I tackled her…" The next words couldn't be understood since he was being dangled a foot off the ground by his throat.

Quickly Kagome jumped to her feet and started pulling on Inuyasha's arms to get him to drop their friend. His golden glare continued to burn into the monk as Kagome tried to explain the situation and began prying the claws away from his throat. She apologized for running, declared Miroku practically a hero for keeping her out of the middle of the fight, and she told him about the jewel shard in Sango's back.

"Speaking of Sango," pipes Shippo, "Shouldn't you be getting back to the fight?"

Inuyasha and Kagome looked back to see Sango gingerly retrieving her bone boomerang. Miroku was busy trying to get air back into his lungs.

Glowering, Inuyasha said, "I can't kill her. But I can't let her kill me either. She won't listen to anything I say."

"And we can't leave her," added Kagome.

"She looks like Koga did." Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo all turned confused eyes towards their silver haired friend. Inuyasha sighed. "In the eyes, you idiots. She has that same brainwashed look in her eyes."

"He had shards too," Kagome reminded them, keeping an eye on their friend's progress in their direction.

"She might turn back to normal if we take out the shard."

"That might work, Shippo." Miroku nodded in agreement. "It could certainly not hurt." He looked at Inuyasha. "Find a way to restrain her, and I will pull out the shard. GENTLY, if you please."

"Keh!"

Kagome scooped Shippo up in her arms and took off towards the sidelines to watch as Inuyasha and Miroku went to meet Sango. Predictably, she attacked Inuyasha. Instead of dodging her, this time he jumped over her. Before she had a chance to turn around he grabbed her and pinned her arms to her sides.

"Hurry!" he shouted to Miroku as Sango dropped her head forward, then slammed it back into Inuyasha's nose. He felt it break, and he felt the blood beginning to flow, but he did not let go of his friend.

Quickly Miroku reached towards her back, but the shard would not let him touch it. His fingers were burned when they came too close.

"I can't touch the shard. We need Kagome."

"Try again!"

Miroku glared at the dog demon. "I can't touch it. Get Kagome!"

Thanks to Shippo's keen hearing and the relay of information, Kagome was soon at Miroku's side. The monk held on to Sango's head so she would not bash in Inuyasha's nose again. He yelped when she bit him, drawing blood.

"Hurry!"

Kagome reached towards Sango's back, and the shard fell into her hand.

"I got it!"

Unfortunately, with the power of the shard gone, Sango began to suffer drastically from the loss of blood an immediately fainted. Her heartbeat slowed and her lungs wheezed as she struggled for breath. The sick, wet sound of her breathing made Inuyasha and Shippo look at each other sadly. The demon slayer would not live.

"Will the phoenix feather bring her back to life?" asked Shippo.

"I don't know. We've never tried it."

"What if it doesn't work outside of battle, Inuyasha?"

Miroku looked up at them sharply from his place at Sango's side. "I can hear you. And she is NOT going to die." He looked back at Kagome. "Heal her."

Kagome ran to fetch her bag and took out the strongest potion she had, tossing another to Inuyasha to fix his nose. Miroku lifted Sango into his lap and opened her mouth gently for Kagome to pour the liquid in. But nothing happened. So they tried another bottle. When that didn't work, she tried pouring the liquid directly onto the wounds.

"It's not working…" Tears were streaming down Kagome's face.

"Heal her."

Kagome began crying. "I can't, Miroku. The potions aren't working. I don't know what else to do."

"HEAL HER NOW!"

"DON'T YELL AT HER!" Inuyasha yelled at the monk. "She's trying her best!" He put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Look… Miroku… we…"

Miroku shrugged the clawed hand off of his shoulder. "Kagome, you can heal her. I know you can. In the game you always had powers to heal. You have to have them now. Do it now. Please."

"Miroku, that wasn't this game. She's never had healing powers in this game." Shippo spoke quietly.

"Please, Kagome… please…" Sango's breathing stopped and Miroku began to sob, rocking her back and forth in his arms. "Please… save her…"

Inuyasha hated the pressure that Miroku was putting on Kagome. Yes, it was painful losing Sango. She was their friend. But it wasn't fair of him to be doing this to Kagome. If he knew her, and he felt he did, she would be blaming herself for the rest of her life that she hadn't done enough to save Sango. It made him sad. And it made him angry. He wasn't sure which emotion was going to win out when he opened his mouth next (though it would be a safe bet to guess anger). Only the words didn't come.

Kagome was sitting next to Sango. Her eyes were closed. Slowly she put one hand on the other girl's side and one on her face. To everyone's surprise, she began to glow, her hair lifted and floated about her in an invisible breeze. True that the group had seen her glow before while shooting her arrows in battle, but never outside of battle, and never without a weapon. It was amazing.

The males were silent as the watched the cuts and bruises on Sango's skin slowly begin to heal as her skin began to take on the pink glow as well. Slowly the slayer's eyes fluttered open as she began to breathe again. She too watched in silence as Kagome continued to radiate a pink healing glow.

"Enough," Inuyasha said. "Kagome, that's enough!"

But she continued to keep her eyes closed with her hands on Sango. But the glow began to fade. It wasn't until Inuyasha physically pulled her hands off of their now awake and completely healed friend did her eyes open.

"Inuyasha?"

He smiled at her. "You did good."

"I'm glad." Then she slept.

"That girl just used a level fifteen healing spell on the demon slayer," Kagura exclaimed as she slammed her clipboard loudly on the desk. "That just isn't possible. She's only at level ten! She should not even be able learn that spell for ten more levels! I don't understand. And she used it out of battle? Is that even possible? That is not the way the game is programmed!"

Naraku smiled and leaned back in his chair. "Interesting."


	16. Shard Detector on Strike

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Sixteen: Shard Detector on Strike

"We should go find Koga."

"No, Sango, for the last time we should just let him rot! He turned on us and tried to kidnap Kagome!"

"He's under the shard's influence, INUYASHA! We should get it out of him and THEN go find Naraku!"

"No!"

"YES!"

Miroku finally stepped between the two quarreling friends, though a bit wary of the snarling demon. "Sango is correct. If we can get Koga back on our side, then we have a better chance against Naraku, finishing this stupid game, and going home."

"No, I agree with Inuyasha. We already have enough strong fighters, we don't need Koga too."

Miroku glared at Shippo. "Koga is our friend. It would be cruel to abandon him."

"This game will drive us ALL insane if we don't defeat Naraku and get out of here. Koga is an unfortunate loss," said Shippo calmly.

"We can save him if we get the shards out of him!"

"Quit being so emotional, Sango! He'll be okay after we defeat the game. We don't NEED him to win!"

"You don't know what it's like to be controlled by the shard, INUYASHA." Sango growled as ferociously as the silver haired young man. "We HAVE to save him."

"We don't even know where to start looking," reasoned Shippo.

"He's wants Kagome, so soon enough he will come looking for us. As long as she's out in front I'm sure he will find us."

"SANGO!" gasped Miroku dramatically as he put his hand over his heart. "Are you suggesting that we use lady Kagome as bait?"

Shippo and Inuyasha both swore colorfully and violently at that suggestion. Defending herself against the accusation, Sango exclaims that using Kagome as bait wasn't what she was suggesting at all. Miroku was leaning on his staff looking highly amused at the whole thing. The yelling continued, escalating in volume.

"ENOUGH!" yells the young miko.

From her place on the grass where she had been sitting, resting her head on bent knees, Kagome glared at her friends. Kirara, the fire cat demon that Sango had with her when they found her, was sitting next to her, batting at a lock of Kagome's hair. The miko picked up the small demon and pet her head, trying to calm herself.

Kagome was tired. She was tired of the bickering. She was tired of the fighting, both with the enemies and between friends. She was tired of walking. And she was tired of this whole stupid game that they were trapped in for well over a month now.

"I quit," she informs them. "I'm not going anywhere."

Her friends looked at her then each other.

"Um… Kagome… you can't quit. We've already tried, remember? Besides, we can't look for shards of the jewel without you. You're the only one who can detect them."

Her narrowed gaze turned towards her dog demon friend who just said the wrong thing to a very tired and cranky miko. Kirara jumped from her arms and ran to Sango to be picked up.

"Yeah, well, this shard detector is on strike! I'm not looking for anything except for a hot spring so I can have a nice long hot soak." She fell back onto the ground and closed her eyes, covering them with one of her arms. "No one says a word unless they are telling me where to find that hot spring."

"Kagome…"

"Did you find a hot spring, Inuyasha?"

"Uh… No…"

"Then I'm not listening."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes and stood over his friend with his arms crossed in front of him, doing his best to look intimidating. "Look, Kagome, we have to keep moving. We need to find the rest of those shards, defeat Naraku, and get out of this game. There is no time for baths."

Keeping her eyes closed, Kagome hummed quietly to herself, folding her arms behind her head.

"You can't ignore me!"

She hummed a little louder and tapped her foot to the tune. She stopped for a moment when she felt a pebble hit her arm. _Is he pelting me with pebbles? What is he, five years old?_ It was difficult keeping from smiling. One by one more pebbles fell on her, each one was ignored. Just when she thought the dog demon had finally given up she felt something brush against her nose. It tickled. Cracking one eye open, she saw a blade of grass hovering over her face.

"You can't ignore me forever," he growled softly.

"I can try," she whispered, trying desperately not to giggle.

"Maybe she's right," Miroku said as he sat down on the other side of Kagome. "We are all tired and could use a break."

Inuyasha groaned and let the blade of grass fall. "Not you too!"

"I vote for the hot springs too," said Sango as she reached down to help Kagome stand back up. They ignored Inuyasha's complaints.

The monk leaned back and glanced back and forth between Sango and Kagome. "Don't be so grumpy, Inuyasha. The girls are right. A bath could be… most enjoyable."

When Miroku regained consciousness he followed his somewhat violent friends as they went in search of a hot spring. Luckily for the group of travelers, Inuyasha's sensitive nose and ears soon picked up signs of a hot spring. After close inspection of the spring, the girls decided that they could share, as long as the boys stayed on the other side of the rocks that doubled as a wall.

"Anyone caught peeking gets to try and see if the phoenix feather really does work," warned Sango. "Kirara, toast them if they try to peek." The fire cat mewed affermitavely in response and sat on the rock that shielded their view.

Kagome giggled at the threat, then sank down into the water. It felt really good on her sore muscles. Her mood was already lightening. It was the first time in many days that she actually felt like smiling.

"I miss soap," she told her bathing companion.

"Me too."

"After we get out of this game I think I'm going to soak in a bubble bath for two days."

"Ew, gross, Kagome. Think how cold and funky the water would be after two days." The miko laughed at the face Sango was making.

"I'm going to eat nothing but cheeseburgers and ice cream for a month!" Shippo's voice was heard from around the rocks. Kagome and Sango blushed, they had almost forgotten about the males they were sharing the water with.

"I'm going to sleep."

Kagome laughed and paddled closer to the rocks. "Is that all, Inuyasha? Sleep is your main goal after we get out of here?"

There was a moment of silence. "The ice cream sounds good too," he added.

"I'm going to find a…"

"We KNOW what YOU'RE going to do, monk!" Sango and Kagome laughed as they heard Inuyasha dunk Miroku under the water, not letting him finish his sentence.

When he broke the surface of the water, Miroku was sputtering. He did his best to sound angry and affronted, but his light hearted nature wouldn't let him even pretend to be mad for very long. He proclaimed his innocence with such sincerity that the group almost believed him. ALMOST. They did know him after all.

"What about you, Sango?" Kagome asked, swimming next to her friend. "What are you going to do when you get out of here?"

Sango didn't say anything right away as she used her hands to swirl the water in front of her. "I'm going to hug my family and tell them that I love them." She kept her gaze on the water. "Then I'm going to hang out with my little brother and take him to the arcade like he's always bugging me to. He loves Dance Dance Revolution…" She sniffled and turned her head.

"I'm sorry," Kagome whispered.

The demon exterminator tried to smile. "I know, thank you, Kagome. You saw your family killed too. I'm just being selfish."

"There's nothing selfish about how you feel."

"It seemed so real, Kagome. I could hear their voices as they screamed. I could feel their blood, warm and sticky. There was so much pain while I fought, I felt every cut and bite of the demons. It wasn't like the demons we battle that just disappear into dust. Their deaths were so brutal. Not all of the people in the village died right away. I sat by my father and heard him take his last breath. I saw…" her voice lowered, "I saw Inuyasha kill them all. I saw him murder my father and my baby brother. I saw him laugh as he slashed through their bodies. His claws were stained red with their blood…"

Kagome held her friend and let her cry. "It was Naraku, Sango. It wasn't Inuyasha." She rocked her back and forth, muttering nonsense words that were meant to soothe. When the cries began to subside she began talking about the things they would do together when they got out of the game. She made Sango promise to come visit her at the shrine and to go on a shopping spree for new shoes.

"Maybe we'll even invite along the guys," she snickered.

"I hate shopping." Inuyasha grumbled.

Kagome smiled. She knew that the boys had been listening to the conversation. She was glad that they stayed quiet. It might have embarrassed Sango if the had known that they were all listening to her tale. Anger threatened to bubble over as she thought about how Naraku was torturing her friends. She tried to push those emotions away, to deal with them later. She could only imagine how Inuyasha was feeling after listening to Sango's tale of how she saw him murder her family. She knew that she would find him and talk to him after the others went to bed.

"But we'll need someone to carry all the bags!" Kagome joked, smiling when she heard Sango laugh softly and the boys on the other side of the rocks making smart aleck complaining comments.

"I'm getting all wrinkly, let's get out of here."

"Spoil sport!" Kagome called after Inuyasha good naturedly. She knew that he was giving the girls a little bit of privacy though, in his own unique manner.

"No peeking!" called out Miroku as he splashed loudly out of the water.

"I want to hear you guys talking loudly as you leave!" yelled Sango as she sunk down into the water up to her chin, just in case.

"Why?"

"So we'll know where you guys are, you pervert."

Miroku sighed heavily and agreed to keep talking, though complained how he was so misunderstood. The boys quickly got dressed and started heading back towards camp. The girls didn't talk, they just finished cleaning up. When the voices were far enough away they got out of the water and got dressed. By the time they reached camp there was a nice fire burning.

As they dried their hair near the fire, Kagome wished loudly for marshmallows. Sango disagreed and said they needed s'mores instead of just marshmallows. Miroku scolded the girls for their sweet tooth's and said that hotdogs would be much better for roasting. Shippo suggested shish kabobs. By the time everyone was finished arguing what was the best treat to roast over a campfire they were all starving.

Quickly Kagome went into her bottomless backpack and brought out dinner and fixed everyone their cup of noodles. They tasted a lot less appealing than usual after their discussion on marshmallows and other sweet treats. Kagome couldn't stop thinking about the chocolate and marshmallows.

"We'll hunt for Koga in the morning," Inuyasha said with a mouth full of noodles. Four surprised faces looked at him. He cleared his throat and looked away from the group. "We need those jewel shards he has."

Kagome took hold of the necklace she wore as her friends teased Inuaysa and pulled it out so that she could look at the jewel. It was almost half formed.

"So much more to collect," she whispered to herself as she looked at the jewel. She looked up to find a serious pair of golden eyes watching her. After giving Inuyasha a small smile she tucked the jewel back out of sight and turned her attention back to her the discussion the rest of the group was having.

"We don't even have a deck of cards to play strip poker with, you moron." Sango whacked Miroku over the head, jostling the fire cat out of her lap.

"So, if we had cards you'd play?"

"Don't you start too, Shippo!" warned Sango.

Kagome snickered at her companions. _Trust them to yank me out of a funk._ She glanced at Inuyasha and smiled, thinking of the 'getting to know you' game that they had played before they found Shippo and the rest of the group. He smiled back. Briefly Kagome thought of suggesting the game, then discarded the idea. _It's our game. Inuyasha's and mine._ She was reluctant to share.

"We could play Truth or Dare," suggested the fox kit.

"Not with this pervert! I can only imagine the things he would dare!"

"I agree with Sango," nodded Inuyasha. "Truth or Dare with Miroku is too dangerous."

The monk's eyes opened wide and he put on his best hurt expression. "It pains me that you do not trust me."

Eyes rolled.

"Spin the bottle?"

"Oh for the love of… get your mind out of the gutter, Shippo. You're getting as bad as this pervert here." Inuyasha admonished their youngest companion while whacking Miroku over the head.

"What was that for?" complained the monk as he rubbed the newly formed lump on his head. "I didn't say anything!"

"For being a bad influence," laughed Sango as she gave him an extra whack for good measure.

Kagome smiled as her friends continued to try and find a safe game to play that didn't require cards or dice. As she stroked the soft fur of the fire cat who had found her way to Kagome's lap, she noticed that the darkness in Sango's eyes had begun to fade. Everyone seemed a little happier. A little lighter. Tonight they weren't a group of fearless warriors in search of jewel fragments. Tonight they were friends laughing and having a good time together.

_Tomorrow will come soon enough. We'll be back to fighting and trying to survive. But for now we have tonight._ She cuddled the fire cat demon and grinned at the group.


	17. Wolf Hunt

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Seventeen: Wolf Hunt

"You sure look pretty today KAGOME!"

Grrrrrrrr.

"Did you do something different with your hair, KAGOME? It looks especially lovely."

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

"KAGOME, watch your step. We wouldn't want you to fall, KAGOME!"

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrr

"KAGOME, you…"

"SHUT UP!" Inuyasha roared at Miroku.

Miroku looked at him with his infuriatingly calm smile, pretending not to notice how his friend was flexing his sharp claws. "Now Inuyasha, we all agreed that the best way to lure out Koga is to use Kagome as bait."

"WE DID NOT AGREE!"

"The majority rules."

"I HATE this."

The monk smirked at his furious friend to the blushing miko with the magical skirt_. How is it possible that she never showed more than just a little leg? Considering all the fighting, climbing, and falling the girl does, it is impossible that nothing inappropriate never shows. Perhaps the game we are playing is rated G_. "I am rather enjoying this."

"If you want to keep your eyes," the dog demon snarled, "You'll keep them off of her."

Miroku looked back to Inuyasha in surprise. The young man had been protective of the girl from the moment they met. No, before then. Even when they only knew each other as names on a screen he had been protective of her. Now the Inuyasha was beginning to truly act the part of dog demon with the way he was snarling. _Is it possible for him to be absorbed into the game if he spends too much time here? Could he possibly become a dog demon?_

Miroku was shaken out of his thoughts when he heard Sango calling Kagome's name loudly to come take a look at a rock she found. Immediately Inuyasha's fiery golden gaze went to the demon exterminator. For a moment Miroku was scared. _Would Inuyasha go so far in his protection that he would hurt his other friends? Possibly even kill them? Us? _The monk moved to block the view of Sango before whacking Inuyasha in the head with his staff.

"You are supposed to be trying to catch Koga's scent, Inuyasha. You wouldn't want him surprising us again now would you?" Miroku took a deep breath, hoping his impulsiveness wouldn't get him killed. "I don't think any of us are fast enough to catch up with him should he take Kagome again."

With threats of death and dismemberment, luckily all aimed at Koga this time, Inuyasha stood up and began smelling the air. Then he got down on all fours and began smelling the ground. Usually Miroku would be amused at how dog-like Inuyasha could seem. But now it worried him. It was beginning to look too natural for him.

"Look!" All eyes turned to Kagome, who hadn't spoken all day. The last couple of battles had drained her of most of her energy. "There's a town up ahead. Maybe we'll find some answers there."

Miroku smiled warmly. "Of course we will. I can feel it."

"Ha!" Sango snorted as she stroked Kirara. "You felt it in the last three towns we visited and came up with nothing."

"This time is different."

"What do we have to lose?" asked Shippo. And so it was decided. The group would visit yet another town.

The town looked a lot like the last several towns they visited. In fact, the houses and people were all exactly alike except for the colors of their clothes and the placement of the houses. The designer didn't take a lot of stock in being original.

Inuyasha, Shippo, and Kirara waited for the three humans at the tavern. Waiting at the edge of town had been boring, so a couple of days ago they decided to heck with the humans, they were waiting someplace comfortable. And as long as Kagome ordered enough food for all of them before she left, then they were also able to eat like pigs.

Usually Miroku would follow Sango throughout the villages, hitting on the female villagers who were unable to respond in a real way. He didn't expect any different reaction from the computer simulated people, but he did love the way that Sango reacted. There was something about making her angry that tickled him. Her eyes sparkled with an appealing fire right before she let her fist or weapon fly.

But today Miroku decided to follow Kagome as soon as he was out of Inuyasha's line of sight. It didn't surprise him when Sango decided to go with them. But that was okay, the things he wanted to discuss would involve the demon exterminator as well.

Miko Kagome: Do you know where the wolf tribes are?

Female Villager in Yellow: The baker sells bread and cheese.

Miko Kagome: Cheese?

Female Villager in Yellow: The farmer sells eggs and milk.

Miko Kagome: Yeah, great. But have you seen the wolf tribes?

Female Villager in Yellow: The baker sells bread and cheese.

Miko Kagome: Thanks. Nice talking to you.

Miroku kept silent as she talked to two children, another woman, and three men. None of them knew about the wolf tribes.

"Thought you had a feeling about this place," grumbled Kagome as she stretched her arms to the sky, trying to work out the soreness in her shoulders.

Miroku looked. _Dang that magical skirt_. "There are still many to talk to. We have yet to enter any of the homes."

Kagome stopped and turned back towards the direction the tavern was located. "We'll go get the others and start looting and plundering." She stopped dead in her tracks when she felt Miroku's hand on her arm.

"Might I have a word with you before we go back?"

Miroku cringed as Sango's eyes narrowed on him. Her hand twitching as she fingered the strap on her weapon. There was no doubt about it, the demon slayer would take him out as quick as the demon would if he tried anything. Nervously and quickly he took his hand back from Kagome's arm. No sense tempting fate.

"Of course." _Bless her heart, she tries to not sound suspicious._ _Must approach this with the utmost diplomacy._

"I think the game is making Inuyasha crazy." _Oops_. He took a step away from the miko who was suddenly glowing a scary color of pink. Before this game, Miroku never would have thought of PINK as a scary color. "What I mean to say, is that I think that the game is affecting Inuyasha. I think it is making him more dangerous… more of the demon he is supposed to be playing."

When he wasn't blasted into dust, Miroku felt it safe to open his eyes again. _When did I shut them?_ He hoped his smile was gentle and calming.

"I have noticed that he is becoming more demon-like over these past few weeks. Most especially these past few days. My concern is that he will be a full demon by the time that this game is over, instead of….human."

The miko crossed her arms over her chest angrily and glared at him. But at least the pink glow was gone so he didn't feel like his life was in any immediate danger. Yet. "Koga thinks he's demon. Even Sango got… confused by the game in the beginning. Of course the game affects people."

"Koga and Sango both had a shard. Inuyasha does not."

There was silence.

"Shippo too." Miroku and Kagome turned to look at Sango, who had not been speaking during the exchange. "I've noticed changes in him as well. He spends more time playing kitsune tricks and hunting small prey than participating in conversations. I'm worried too, Kagome."

Miroku watched as Kagome clenched and unclenched her fists. He wondered if she was trying to keep from pummeling him.

"And what," she asked angrily, "Are you proposing?"

He cleared his throat, hoping to get through this conversation with all his body parts intact. "Sango and I are excellent fighters, and your abilities in fighting and healing improve by leaps and bounds every day..."

"No."

"The three of us are strong."

"No." She turned to leave, without looking backwards. "I refuse to leave them. Think of something else."

Miroku and Sango watched as the angry miko walked away, still trying to control her anger. When she was out of sight Miroku sank to the ground. He was surprised when Sango sat next to him.

"Very smooth," she commented.

"It didn't go as well as I had hoped."

"Hmm."

Miroku sighed. "What do you think we should do?"

This time Sango sighed as she turned towards him. "I guess we wait and watch. Keep your guard up. But Kagome won't leave them. She wouldn't leave any of us. We'll take her advice and think of something else. Who knows, things might work out for the best after all."

Nodding, Miroku stood up. He was surprised when Sango allowed him to help her up. Of the million times he had offered his hand to her for help, this was the first time she took it. He smiled. At least something was going right today.

Miroku was pleasantly surprised to see that Inuyasha was not looking at him like he was going to shred him into teeny tiny pieces. Obviously Kagome didn't tell them about the conversation that had taken place. _Bless that girl._ Luck was on his side after all. Not only that, but by the time they arrived, Kagome had found someone who knew of the wolf demon tribe.

"To think that the person we needed to talk to was in the tavern all along," she laughed and looked towards an older man sitting at the bar.

If anyone found her laugh forced, they kept it to themselves. Only Inuyasha looked suspicious, but he didn't say anything either. Miroku, however, felt very uncomfortable every time those accusing golden eyes fell on him.

"What did he tell you?" asked Sango.

"The tribes are to the north." Kagome bit her lip and looked away. "They have been attacking humans."

"We shall head out as soon as we stock up on supplies."

"I thought you already went out to get supplies," said Inuyasha, leaning towards the monk, invading her personal space. "Isn't that what you were supposed to be doing? Or were you… distracted?"

Miroku knew his mouth was open, but he couldn't make words come out. He knew. Something in the dog demon's eyes was telling Miroku that he knew. _Will he torture me before he kills me?_ Quickly he chastised himself for thinking such disturbing thoughts about his friend. But his friend was human. The young man before him was slowly turning demon.

"We were questioning villagers, Inuyasha. We had not yet started our shopping." Miroku shot Sango a grateful smile. "We heard that the baker has bread."

"And cheese," added Kagome as she stood up and shouldered her backpack.

"Cheese?"

"Yes, Shippo."

"At the bakers?"

"Yes, Shippo." Kagome rolled her eyes and headed for the door. "Let's get going. We need to hurry up so we can head north."

"Perhaps there will be chocolate for you at this shop."

"Don't get my hopes up like that, Miroku. That's just cruel."

_Death, it seems, is not yet in the cards for me._ Miroku breathed more easily when the group found the bakers shop and began purchasing items. By the time they reached the potions shop everyone seemed to be in a much better mood. However, his nervousness returned when they came to the weapons shop. Inuyasha's questions and comments on how sharp he felt certain swords were was beginning to unnerve the monk. Kagome's way too amused snickering did not help matters much.

"Still no luck finding chocolate, KAGOME?" asks Miroku.

"Stop shouting her name, monk, or I'll have to cut you."

"KAGOME, Inuyasha is being mean!"

"Shut up, Shippo!"

"Tell Inuyasha to please refrain from smacking Shippo while he is riding on my shoulder, KAGOME." Miroku frowned at the kit's scratch marks on his cloak.

"I'm warning you, Miroku…"

Sango snickered. "KAGOME, Inuyasha is growling at Miroku again."

Kagome sighed and stopped walking. "Please don't let me kill my friends today," she prayed aloud as she rubbed her temples.

Miroku was still inspecting his torn cloak and dodging Inuyasha's half-hearted attacks when he heard Kagome gasp. He looked up and saw her scanning the horizon, searching for something. By this time he knew that look. _Jewel shards._

"Shards are coming fast!" Kagome warned her friends.

Inuyasha sniffed the air and growled. "Koga." He drew his sword and snarled out a few rude curse words and voiced some rather detailed and creative explanations of what parts of the wolf he would begin removing first should he step out of line and how those parts would be removed. Miroku cringed.

"Remember that he is our friend," reminded the monk. "We want the jewel shards, we don't want him dead."

"Speak for yourself, monk," two demon voices muttered.

The group watched as a whirlwind quickly approached. It was headed straight for them. Miroku called to Shippo and held onto him while he backed away, motioning for Sango and Kirara to follow. He didn't figure that Inuyasha would listen to him anyhow, so he didn't even bother trying to get his attention.

"No killing our friends," he reminded the dog demon loudly.

"Feh."

As the whirlwind approached, Inuyasha stood protectively in front of Kagome. Miroku prayed fervently that Koga would be smart enough to pay attention to the fact that Inuyasha's body language was saying "Touch her and die" clear as day. It wasn't exactly difficult to interpret.

But alas, that was too much to hope for. Even in cyberspace, the wolf never was able to take a hint.

"Kagome!" The whirlwind stopped in front of Inuyasha and Kagome.

"Stay away from her!"

Unfortunately, the wolf did not heed the other demon's advice. Instead he side stepped him and grabbed both of Kagome's hands in his.

"My love! My mate! I'm sorry I had to leave you in the care of the mutt there. Please forgive me."

Kagome blushed and looked to her friends for help. "Uhhh…."

"GET YOUR MANGY HANDS OFF HER!"

As Inuyasha lifted his sword, Koga swept Kagome into his arms. Miroku frowned. _He's using Kagome as a shield!_ He couldn't decide if that was an intelligent move or a cowardly one. At any rate, it worked. The tip Inuyasha's sword fell to the ground.

"Let her go and fight me like a man!"

The wolf demon's tail twitched, and only let his blue eyes drift to Inuyasha for a moment before dismissing him. Quickly Miroku moved towards them to restrain Inuyasha. He pulled one of his charms and threw it on Inuyasha, praying that it would work outside of the battlefield. And it did. The dog demon was frozen in place.

_If looks could kill…_ Miroku shivered. "I'm sorry, my friend, but we can't risk Kagome's life." The look he got after that particular sentence put the first one to shame. Miroku began questioning whether or not he should ever take that charm off now.

"You DARE think that I would hurt her?" The words were not loud. In fact, they were hissed so quiet and low that only Miroku could hear them. And they chilled him.

Miroku didn't answer the question. Instead he shared a worried glance with Sango before turning his attention back to Koga and Kagome. The girl was looking very uncomfortable with the flowering praises being heaped on her by the prince of the wolf demon tribe.

"Look, Koga," she said as she tried to push away from him. "I think you're a nice guy, and I like you as a friend. But I don't like you like THAT."

"You will learn to love me." His blue eyes sparkled.

"Koga. Listen to me. I do not love you. I will not love you. Ever. We can only ever be friends. And if you keep pushing like this, we won't even be able to be friends. So back off. Now."

But he only smiled happily at her, laughed merrily, and held her closer. "You are funny, Kagome! I claimed you as my mate long ago, you belong to me. Come, you will be a princess. You will have everything you could possibly desire. I will make it my life to please you and make you happy."

"No, Koga. I'm not your mate. I…"

"She can not abandon the quest!" Miroku spoke up. After dealing with Inuyasha's recent glares, the one he got from Koga didn't make him blink an eye. "Kagome has a responsibility to finish the quest. She must gather the jewel shards so she can save her father's life."

Sango smiled as she made her way to stand just out of reach of the lecherous monk. "Come with us, Koga, prince of the wolf demons," she said respectfully. "With your aid she can finish the quest and… make a home."

"Sango! NO!"

"Quiet, Shippo."

The fox demon jumped from her shoulder and went to sit behind Inuyasha's leg. Miroku sighed, now the growling and snarling had doubled. The monk pulled out another charm so Shippo could see it. The threat worked.

Koga looked down at Kagome, who was looking horrified at what her friends had just said. The wolf demon was grinning at her like she was dessert.

"Be my mate and I will help you on your quest."

"Koga… I… I can't…"

Miroku cleared his throat. "The jewel shards you have in your leg will be of great help to us. Will you give these shards to your… ahem… mate?" _Please listen, Kagome. Agree to be his mate and we'll get the shards._

"Of course. Anything for my mate."

"Once you agree to be his mate, then he will be a part of our group. You want that, right Kagome? Isn't that why we are here? Agree to be his mate." Sango pleaded.

Kagome's eyes got wide. She looked at Miroku and Sango. Their faces were hopeful. Miroku knew the moment when she made the connection of what they were trying to tell her. _Agree to be his mate. Get him to join our group. We'll get the shards and everything will be back the way it should be._

Miroku followed her gaze to Inuyasha. He was expecting the dog demon to be howling and cursing and screaming. But he was strangely quiet. His ears drooped and his eyes would not leave hers. Anything he was saying to her was being said with his eyes. And whatever it was he was saying to her, it held her spellbound.

"Stop it, Inuyasha. Let her do this. You are only making things harder. It won't be forever, just until we get the shards." Miroku whispered, grateful that Koga's attention was focused on Kagome.

"She will be promising herself to him, monk. It's wrong."

"Once he is back in his right mind we'll explain things to him. The promise won't mean anything. It's just to get him to join us. She won't really be his mate."

Inuyasha froze him to the spot with his golden eyes. "It is still a promise. And it is wrong. Don't make her do this. Don't guilt her into doing this."

"It's the easiest way, Inuyasha. Don't be a jealous fool!" he hissed.

"I will kill you if you make her do this."

Miroku looked down when he heard Shippo's soft voice. The kit wasn't cowering like he had first thought. He was adding his support to the other demon. "I'll help, Inuyasha." It was too serious of a promise from one who looked so young.

Before anyone could make another threat, or trying talking anyone out of anything, Kagome spoke.

"I can not be your mate, Koga. I don't love you. I'm sorry." Quickly she pushed away from the wolf demon, catching him off balance. Obviously he thought he had won since he had the support of her human friends. Her rejection left him confused. Then furious.

The miko smiled at her dog demon friend and started walking towards him. Miroku watched in horror as Koga grabbed her from behind, his claws dragging down her arm.

"YOU ARE MINE!"

Miroku ran towards Kagome. Sango was already throwing her weapon. Just as Miroku reached Kagome to drag her to safety, he felt a kick land in his gut. He flew several feet before he landed against a boulder.

Blindly he got up and grabbed for his staff, only to realize that it had been knocked too far out of reach. The charms had fallen out of his pockets when he flew. _Guess I'll do this the old fashioned way._ He ran back towards the wolf demon, dodging the bone boomerang as it flew towards their once friend.

Just as he was able to grab onto Kagome's arm he felt his gut being torn open. The last thing he heard was the screams of two women and the curses of one angry dog demon calling for the charm to be removed before his world went black.

Two sets of memories assaulted Miroku at once. The first set was the memories of his life in the real world. The second was the memories that were given to him in the game. They played simultaneously, weaving in and out of each other, merging. They flickered by quickly, not giving him time to process any of the information. Then everything went quiet and still.

Although there was nothing there, Miroku felt himself being pulled. He didn't fight it. It was calming and comforting. He wasn't afraid. He knew he was dead. He did find it ironic how he had been thinking of death all day from the hands of his friend, but he was wrong in which friend it was who would be killing him.

Suddenly he felt a stronger pull. Confused he looked around. There was still nothing. But the second pull yanked him violently from the calming darkness. Voices began to fill his head, making him dizzy.

The first thing he was aware of was a sharp stabbing pain in his ribs. Poke. Poke. Poke. Then he heard voices. At first they were mumbly, then he began hearing words. All the time he kept feeling that poking in his side. He slowly opened one eye, but shut them tight when the blinding sunlight pierced his brain.

"He's awake!" It was Sango's voice. It was rough and unsteady. _Was she crying?_

Cautiously he opened his eyes. A pair of amused golden eyes were staring down at him.

The dog demon grinned. "Still want that scrawny wolf to join our group?"

Miroku groaned and slowly sat up. He glared at Shippo who was poking him in the side with a sharp stick. The fox kit gave him an innocent smile as he gave him one last poke.

"I was just helping," the kit said.

Miroku looked over to a very tired looking Kagome who was hugging a very distraught Sango. The demon slayer turned away from them and wiped her eyes before turning back to the monk.

"You're an idiot," she told him.

Miroku smiled. _She loves me._

"Guess the phoenix feather works after all," Miroku said as he struggled to his feet. He accepted Sango's help and leaned against her, perhaps more than he really needed to, but he wasn't about to pass up a chance like this!

Inuyasha shook his head. "No, it didn't. We tried it though."

"We think it only works in battle, when the music Kagome hears is playing. It must be one of those rules of the games." Shippo explained as if Miroku was an idiot.

"Then how… I was dead…. how…?"

All eyes turned to Kagome who smiled weakly and waved.

"IMPOSSIBLE!"

Naraku looked up from the screen to see Kagura's furious face. He gave her an indulgent smile before turning back to the monitor.

"She can't revive the dead outside of battle! That isn't possible! They are cheating! Somehow they are CHEATING!"

"Perhaps, my child, it is time for you to join the game."


	18. The Rosary

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Eighteen: The Rosary

Inuyasha looked at the rosary around his neck with mixed feelings. Three days ago he turned into a full demon, thirsting for blood. Sure it had happened while they were fighting a huge dragon demon and their lives were on the line, but the dog demon knew that he hadn't cared about friend or foe, only about killing. _Would I have turned these claws on Kagome?_ He couldn't imagine doing it. After all, even as a demon his instincts were to protect her… at all costs. But there was still a chance…

Out of the corner of his eye Inuyasha looked at Sango and Miroku. _Would I have killed those two? And what about Shippo? Kagome wouldn't be strong enough to bring them all back from the dead._

"They look nice…they suit you…" Kagome sadly touched one of the fangs on the rosary, before giving him a smile. "Very manly, you know."

"Keh."

He knew she didn't want to do it. But the group felt they had no choice. Inuyasha knew that Sango and Miroku had been getting nervous around him and Shippo for the past couple of weeks. It wasn't until he turned full demon with blood red eyes, elongated fangs and claws, and purple stripes on his face did Kagome start getting worried. But she worried about him, not about her own safety. For that Inuyasha was grateful. But HE did worry about her.

Turning full demon had scared him. Really really scared him. It was as if something else was in control of his body. So reluctantly he agreed to go find Kaede to see if she had any solutions to their problem. She was the only computer character that seemed to have any answers to anything.

And the old woman's solution was to put a collar on the dog.

Inuyasha's ears flattened against his head as he glared at Kaede. With a simple spell, the beads and fangs had appeared out of thin air and surrounded his neck, creating an unbreakable rosary. And Inuyasha did try to break it. He also found that he was unable to pull it off of his neck or even cut the strings with his claws. In fact, the stupid thing did absolutely nothing at all.

Until Kagome spoke her command.

Sit boy.

Inuyasha let his glare fall on the young miko. It was the command for a dog. _Is that how she sees me? As a dog? A pet?_ He knew he was being unreasonable, that this was just a game, that she knew that he was a man and not a dog. But that didn't make him feel any better when he went crashing to the ground every time she said the word. So far she said it three times. The first time was for the spell. The second times had been on accident. But accident or not it still stung.

He hated the rosary. Even though he had only had it for less than an hour he already hated it with a passion.

"Sit boy!"

Inuyasha cringed, prepared to slam into the ground again. When the rosary didn't react he opened his eyes.

"Miroku! That was mean!" Kagome admonished the monk with her hands on her hips.

But the lecherous monk was too busy falling on the ground and laughing to pay much attention to the censure in her words. "Did you see? Haaaa ha ha ha… Did you see him flinch? That was priceless!"

Inuyasha prepared to leap at his friend and maybe scratch him up a bit. Nothing fatal. Probably. Maybe.

"Sit boy!"

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

"Shippo, that wasn't funny!"

"Sure it was, Kagome!" the kit laughed.

Inuyasha crouched on the floor, glaring at the kit. He was a dispensable member of the team wasn't he? Kagome wouldn't miss him… much….

"Sit boy!"

Kagome gasped and Inuyasha growled. "Sango!"

The demon exterminator giggled. "Well, at least now we know it only works for you, Kagome." She reached down to pat Inuyasha on the head, but he jerked away from her. "Good boy," she laughed.

With a few choice swear words involving creative suggestions of what they should do with themselves, Inuyasha left the hut. He would have slammed the door if it had one. _I'm sure they'll be laughing at the pit of the next dragon demon's stomach. Ha! Their crazy if they think I'll save them now… _He jumped into a tree and snarled.

Against his will, the dog demon's ear twitched at the sounds coming from the hut. Voices were being raised… well… one voice in particular. Then there was silence. After a moment the monk, demon exterminator, and kit all filed out of the hut with their heads down and blushes on their cheeks. But the angry dog demon refused to acknowledge their apologies. They groveled a little bit, then eventually left him alone. He heard them return to the hut.

Soft footsteps made their way to his tree and stopped underneath. He didn't need his nose to tell him it was Kagome. The footsteps gave her away. The comforting smell was just a bonus.

"They really are sorry, Inuyasha."

"Keh."

"I don't think they realized they hurt your feelings until too late. They took their teasing too far and they know it. Forgive them?"

He refused to answer. He was still mad.

"Please come down so I can apologize."

Silence.

Sigh. "Don't make me say 'it' Inuyasha."

That did it. Inuyasha dropped and landed in a crouch in front of the miko. He was glaring at her with eyes practically glowing. "Already abusing your power, are you? Enjoying it?" He knew he was snarling, but he couldn't help it. It hurt. Not the falling, that he could handle. But it hurt that she would control him like that. That she could.

Kagome sighed and stepped towards him. He took a step back, feeling a bit like a cornered animal. He dug his claws into the earth, preparing to bolt. "Inuyasha, please stand still for a second, will you?"

"Or what? Or you'll punish me, oh great and powerful mistress?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "No, you idiot. If you hate the stupid thing that much I'll just take it off of you!" She lunged forward and grabbed the rosary.

Images of himself as a demon ripping into his friends made Inuyasha's hands grab her wrists before she could lift the necklace. "No. Wait."

Kagome cocked her head to one side, obviously confused by his sudden change of attitude. "Don't you hate it?

"Yes."

"Don't you want it off?"

"Yes."

"Then let go of my hands and I'll take it off of you."

He sighed heavily, clutching her hands tighter. "What if I turn into a demon again?"

She shrugged. "We'll figure it out when the time comes."

"What if I attack you?"

"You won't."

"But how do you KNOW?"

She gave him a sweet smile and a short laugh. "I just know. So let go and I'll get this stupid thing off you."

Pictures of Kagome covered in blood, dead by his claws, filled Inuyasha's head. He just couldn't shake it. _She trusts me._ He looked into her eyes and saw the truth in that. She really did trust him. But Inuyasha wasn't so sure he could trust himself, not as a demon. It wasn't worth the gamble.

"I want to keep it."

"But…"

He pulled her hand from the rosary and brought them down to her sides. He let go of her right hand but kept her left hand in his as he started pulling her back towards the hut.

"After all, it suits me."

Kagome grinned up at him. "Oh yes. Did I mention they look very manly on you?"

Inuyasha touched his rosary. He still hated it. But if it could protect Kagome… maybe it wasn't so bad after all.

"They do, don't they?" he smirked.


	19. Breaking the Wind

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Nineteen: Breaking the Wind

_I am the free._

_I am powerful._

_I am wild._

_I am the wind._

Kagura lifted her face into the wind as she rode on her feather towards the group of fighters who were turning her game inside out. Well, okay, technically it was Naraku's game, but Kagura was one of the main developers and technicians. The game was her baby. And these players were messing with her game. She didn't know how they were bypassing the system to be able to operate outside of battle and to gain powers when they shouldn't. _For that they will pay, regardless of what plans Naraku may have for them._

Hopping off of the feather, Kagura did a pirouette through the air before she landed lightly on her toes. She smiled, feeling giddy. _This game is amazing! I feel light as air. I am the wind!_ She did another pirouette before snatching the now shrunken feather out of the air and tucked it behind her ear.

From behind a tree walked a small pale young woman with empty eyes. In her hands she held an ornate round mirror.

"Kanna, over here!"

Kagura walked over to her co-worker. The other woman had not been particularly keen on going into the game. She was a quiet woman who didn't like violence. But she was a genius when it came to character design. She seemed to give the characters heart and soul. Naraku had threatened to fire her if she didn't go in, so here she was. Kagura, the wind demon, whacked the pale woman over the head gently with her over sized fan.

"They are still miles away, but we need to get some jewel shards before we attack. Can you find us some?"

Kanna nodded before closing her eyes, holding the mirror in front of her. Kagura watched in fascination as the images in the mirror swirled until a large demon appeared. It was an ogre demon.

"I don't see the shard. Where is it?"

Kanna shrugged.

Sigh. "You can't see it can you?" Kanna shook her head slightly. "Well, if we can't find our own shard, then perhaps we can just steal the shards that those insidious brats have already collected and put them out of our misery."

Kanna shook her head again.

Kagura swore in frustration before turning back to her co-worker. "Why not?"

"Only the miko can fuse the jewel. Only the miko can complete it. Naraku wants it complete. She must live."

The women decided to wait until the group of travelers came closer. They watched in the mirror as they found the ogre demon. It was defeated fairly quickly. Kagura was disappointed. She had been hoping for a better show than that. It also unnerved her a little. They shouldn't be that strong yet.

"I am the wind." She whispered to herself, "I cannot be defeated."

They watched as the group continued on down a path that was leading away from them. They seemed to be playing a game of sorts. _Rock, paper, scissors?_ Kagura watched as they played the game. Whoever won would go forward the same number of steps as syllables of the names of their weapons. It was a simple game, silly really, but they seemed to be having fun anyhow. _They aren't taking the game seriously_, Kagura fumed.

"They must have a weakness, Kanna. How can we defeat them?" Kagura wasn't expecting an answer, but she got one when Kanna's mirror began to glow.

In the mist of the mirror there was an image of a girl. In fact, it was the image of a young raven haired miko.

"Kagome? Are we supposed to dispose of her? Kidnap her? I thought you said that Naraku told us she must not die, that she has to be brought back alive."

Kanna shook her pale head. "Look closer."

The wind demon did as she was told. It took her a moment to realize that the young miko in the mirror was not Kagome after all, but the look alike priestess. It was the same girl who shot the dog demon through the heart at the beginning of the game.

"Divide and conquer," said Kanna softly.

With a smile, Kagura flicked her wrist and sent her feather flying. She grabbed Kanna by the scruff of her neck and pulled her onto her unusual form of transportation.

"Let's go find us a priestess."

It didn't take long to find the miko from the mirror, the girl had simply been wandering. Kanna told the wind demon the young woman's name was Kikyo, but the wind demon didn't really care. All she cared about was doing a little reprogramming on the non-playable character so that it would do what she wanted it to.

After an hour of playing with the codes of Kikyo, they had the priestess looking exactly like Kagome, right down to the school girl outfit.

"When they stop to bathe, find a way to get the dog demon alone with you and kill him. Then kill the slayer. Go after the monk next, then the fox demon. Make sure that you don't kill the miko, but you can maim her a little."

Kagura watched as Kikyo nodded and began walking in the direction the group was headed. Satisfied with the directions she gave, the wind demon went to find herself a nice comfortable spot to watch the show through Kanna's mirror. It was getting close to dusk, the time when the group usually stopped to find a suitable place to camp. She regretted that she didn't have a big bowl of popcorn in front of her for the show.

Predictably, the group found a spot with a hotspring nearby. Kagome and Sango left the males and went off alone to soak in the water. Kagura watched as Kikyo watched them leave. The doppelganger priestess walked back to camp. The dog demon questioned her about why she was there, but she gave him a smile and crooked her finger at him to beckon him to follow her. The monk made a perverted comment that had him kissing the ground and Shippo shaking his head sadly at him. Kikyo smiled again at the dog demon over her shoulder as she began walking away from the hotspring. Inuyasha followed.

They walked a good distance from the camp. All of Inuyasha's questions were silenced with a seductive smile.

"Aren't we getting a little far from the others, Kagome?"

Smile.

"Uh… what are you doing? Uh… what did you want to…."

Inuyasha's words died on his lips as Kikyo stood in front of him. His face turned red as she leaned in closer. He backed up nervously. But for every step he took backwards, Kikyo stepped towards him.

"What are you doing?"

She tilted her head slightly and raised her lips towards him. Inuyasha grabbed her shoulders. He held her just a breath away.

"INUYASHA!"

Kagura swore. She hadn't been paying attention to where the real Kagome was. And now the furious miko was spoiling everything.

"SIT!"

Crash!

"Kagome?"

"SIT SIT SIT!"

Kagura snarled as Kagome stormed into the clearing. As Kagome screamed her three letter word, Kagura screamed a very similar sounding four letter one as Kikyo raised her bow and took aim at Kagome. The young miko's eyes widened, her words dying on her lips. But Kikyo didn't shoot. Instead she slowly turned the point of her arrow towards the cursing dog demon laying helplessly on the ground, bound by the spell.

She let the arrow fly.

The sigh of relief was short lived for the wind demon as the young miko dove in front of arrow, sacrificing herself for her friend.

"NOOOOOOOoooooo!" The anguished scream of the dog demon could be heard for miles. The pain in his voice almost made Kagura regret sending Kikyo. She had to remind herself that it was their own stupid fault for messing with her game. As he screamed the girl's name over and over again Kagura had to keep reminding herself that the fault was theirs, chanting it silently like a mantra.

When Kagura looked back in the mirror she saw that there was only bits and pieces left of Kikyo around the clearing. Shreds.

The dog demon was pulling out the arrow and trying to stop the bleeding as the other three companions showed up with the magical yellow bag. Inuyasha let none of them come near the miko, instead he barked out commands of items for them to find in the bag. They were nearly crying in frustration at being unable to bring out any healing potions. Only Kagome could make it work.

"It's their fault," Kagura whispered.

_Will the girl die? Will she die in real life? Will Naraku kill me for this or just fire me?_ Kagura bit her lip as she turned away from the mirror. She knew the answer to the last question… Naraku would surely kill her.

Kagura brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. She closed her eyes and rested her head on her knees, rocking back and forth. She couldn't see what was going on in the clearing with the gamers, but she could still hear them. The dog demon blamed the slayer for not staying with her. The slayer blamed the demon for not knowing the doppelganger wasn't Kagome. The monk tried unsuccessfully to calm them down. The fox kit only wailed out the girl's name.

"Watch," commanded Kanna softly.

Reluctantly Kagura opened her eyes. She wiped at the tears threatening to fall before turning back to the mirror again. She blinked. _Was it possible?_ Kanna almost smiled as she nodded her head to the unspoken question.

The dog demon had placed the girls hand over the wound, holding it there with his own, ordering her to fight. The miko's hand was starting to glow pink. Slowly the chest began to glow as well. Soon her entire body was covered in the warm pink light. She was actually healing herself.

One soft chuckle escaped Kagura's lips. Then another. With a burst of laughter the wind demon jumped to her feet and spun around in circles with her hands stretched to the sky. Eventually she grabbed Kanna and swung her around in her slightly mad dance of joy. After letting Kanna go she took the feather from behind her ear and tossed it high into the air, smiling as it transformed.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm the wind, dear Kanna. I am going to fly."

"The mission."

Kagura laughed at the slightly scolding reminder. "Let the girl heal herself a bit first, then we'll get back to the mission. We can't have her dying on us, now can we?"

With that, she jumped into the air, landing lightly on her feather. Holding on tightly she willed the feather to float higher and higher. She laughed again, suddenly feeling overjoyed. Leaning forward she got the feather to increase its speed.

_Faster!_

_Must go faster!_

_I want to stay here forever!_

_I want to be free!_

Then a voice whispered in her head, one that would not be ignored. She wasn't really free. She could only remain in the game as long as she did what Naraku told her to do. Once her mission was over she would be pulled out of the game.

"I want to stay," she said aloud.

But the voice told her it would be impossible. After all, her real body was in the real world. If Naraku chose, he could pull the plug and get her out at any time. Her eyes widened a bit in fear as another thought struck her. _He could kill me! He could kill me and blame it on a malfunction of the game! She _thought back to the release form she had signed, absolving him of all responsibility since the game was still in the testing phase.

Her feather slowed to a stop as she shuddered in fear. Her life was in his hands. Not only that, but he could see ever move she made through the monitor. Closing her eyes she tried to memorize the feel of the wind on her face as she floated in the air, the feeling of freedom.

Kagura watched the sky from her perch until the stars in the sky began to fade and dawn approached. With a heavy heart she turned back in the direction where she left Kanna. The would attack before the sun hit the sky. The group would be asleep and easy prey. Perhaps she could kill all but the miko in their sleep. That would save a lot of time and effort. Maybe then Naraku wouldn't be angry with her for waiting. She could say it was her strategy from the beginning. No one had to know she just wanted a little longer to feel free and alive.

As she suspected, Kanna was waiting patiently for her with vacant eyes. For a brief moment Kagura wondered what the woman was like out of the work setting. She chuckled as she pictured the pale woman out clubbing.

"Do you have any hobbies?" Kagura asked on a whim.

Kanna looked at her co-worker blankly. "Yes."

Silence.

More silence.

"Well? What are they?"

"Sky diving."

Kagura's jaw dropped. Sky diving? Kanna? Quiet no personality little Kanna? "Your kidding me, right?"

With curiously empty eyes and an unchanging expression Kanna looked at her before turning to walk towards the gamers' campsite. As they walked (or in Kagura's case, floated), the wind demon wondered which was more unlikely, Kanna being a thrill seeker and plummeting out of a plane or Kanna having a sense of humor and actually making a joke. It was a tough imagining either.

The soft glow of a dying campfire came into view. Kagura pulled Kanna on the feather with her so that no footsteps would be heard. Slowly the floated forward.

"What the…?" The sleeping rolls were there, but no sleepers. Kagura looked around confused. "Where are they?"

Before Kanna could open her mouth, an arrow flew out of the trees and pinned Kagura's sleeve to a tree. She turned to look at figures emerging from the shadows. _I really hate them_, she snarled silently.

"We could hear you coming a mile away," the kit laughed from his perch on the miko's shoulder.

"Never mind hearing anything, we could smell you!" Inuyasha stood confidently with his sword resting on his shoulder. "Rude to wake us up though. Guess we should teach you some manners."

Kagura hissed at him. "You stupid brat!" She ripped her sleeve to free herself and pulled out her fan. "Dance of Blades!"

With a sweep of her arm, the fan send blades of wind sharp enough to slice through a tree. The surprise on their faces was worth any price. Unfortunately they all managed to jump (or be carried) out of the path of the blades.

"She's not like the others," Kagome tells her companions.

"Smart girl," Kagura purred. "Too bad that won't save you. Kanna! The mirror!"

The pale woman faced the mirror towards Kagome and murmured a few words. The group gasped when the girl dropped to the ground clutching her chest.

Inuyasha roared and jumped to slice Kanna in half, but Kagura blew him back with a gust of wind. The demon slayer's boomerang was similarly taken care of. The fire cat demon was a little harder to fight. It kept jumping through the air and breathing fire at them between attacks with its large and pointy teeth.

While Kagura fought blew them back one by one, Kanna turned the mirror on Miroku next. Quickly he fell to the ground.

"Miroku!" screamed the demon slayer. She turned blazing eyes onto Kanna. "What have you done to him!"

"She has sucked out his soul into the mirror, joining the young miko." Kagura laughed. "But don't worry, you will be joining them soon. Kanna!"

Before Sango could say another word, her soul was being ripped from her body. The fox kit followed quickly. The dog demon was harder to pin down. He was quick. Not only that, but he seemed to have gone through some sort of transformation. His claws and teeth were longer and sharper and his eyes had turned red. Not to mention the stripes of purple on his cheeks. That was disorienting enough for the wind demon, but he also seemed faster and stronger.

Not only that, but the fire cat was a sprite of the game and the mirror was useless against it. All in all, things weren't going quite like Kagura had planned. On the plus side, the dog demon was covered in gashes and was losing blood at an impressive rate. There was no way his body would hold up for very long. Unfortunately so was she since he had gotten in several strikes.

"Die!" she yelled and she swung her fan. Luck was with her, and the gust took the dog demon and pinned him to a tree. "NOW!"

Kanna turned the mirror to the silver haired demon as he roared and snarled at him. The wind demon breathed a sigh of relief as she saw his soul literally being sucked from him. She was glad that this was finally over.

"NO!"

Startled, Kagura turned around. The miko was up! _That's impossible! Kanna sucked out her soul, she shouldn't be able to move! She isn't even healed from nearly dying yesterday. It's impossible! _Weak and staggering, but still standing. Too surprised to move quick enough, Kagura watched as the girl let an arrow fly at the mirror.

It shattered.

And when it shattered the souls immediately returned to their bodies. And those bodies were not happy once they got to their feet. Weakened by blood loss, Kagura knew that there was no way that she was going to win. She dropped to one knee. _Die by their hands or die by Naraku's._

The group was gathering their weapons, getting ready to strike.

Kagura turned her eyes to the sky and smiled. _So be it._

Quickly Kagura took the feather from behind her ear and let it fly into the air. With a graceful jump she landed on the now large floating feather. Laughing she let the feather carry her away as fast as she could manage, leaving behind a startled Kanna and confused game players.

She knew that she may not have much life left ahead of her, but the wind demon was determined to enjoy every last second that she had, for as long as she still had breath in her body.

_I am the free._

_I am powerful._

_I am wild._

_I am the wind._


	20. Pelt of a Baboon

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Nineteen: Pelt of a Baboon

Naraku watched the computer screen as Kagura abandoned Kanna and fled from the battle. He wondered if the woman had forgotten that this was merely a game, that her real body lay not ten feet away from him hooked up to various wires and tubes that let her experience this virtual existence.

The temptation to unplug her was great. It would be interesting to see what would happen. Would she go insane after being ripped from the virtual world? Would she die from the shock? Or would it simply be like shutting off a video game and everything goes back to normal? Getting people into the game to experience it as real life was not the same as getting them out with their sanity intact. Then again, he never promised anyone that they would be sane once the game was completed. He smirked. No, he never promised that.

It was also tempting to simply kill the woman for disobeying him. Betraying him. _Very tempting. _

"Fly, my little wind demon," he whispered to the screen. "While you still can."

Next he checked on Kanna. She had disappeared from battle shortly after Kagura flew away. She was sitting at the edge of a stream, looking hard into her mirror. Naraku suspected that she was looking for her way back.

"Not yet," he told her. "You're not finished yet."

Not far down the stream from Kanna was the group of players that Naraku had sent into the game. The looked confused at the sudden departure of their enemies. It was the first time an enemy had fled from battle. But the battle had given Naraku exactly the information that he was after. Kagome was the one. There was no doubt anymore.

Grabbing his keys from the top desk drawer, Naraku whistled happily and left the office. The corridor was empty, which was no surprise. Naraku employed very few people. The ride down the elevator was silent, but that did not keep the man from humming his own little tune. Once he reached the bottom floor he took out his key ring and strolled across the lobby towards the storerooms at the back of the building.

He unlocked the third storeroom door and flipped on the light. Still humming his tune he went to the back of the room and unlocked another door and stepped into a small elevator. He pushed the button that would take him down into the rooms below the basement. It had been a very long time since he had been able to smile like this.

"Greetings, my love," he said once the door opened.

Chained to the wall was a woman slumped on the floor and glaring at him. Her clothes were worn and dirty and her hair was matted and knotted. Cinnamon colored eyes were bloodshot and shadowed from lack of sleep. She gave him her usual greeting.

"Now, sweetheart, it is not very ladylike to use such words." He paused. "Or gestures."

Casually, as if he wasn't approaching a woman who looked ready to kill him, Naraku walked over with his hands in his pockets. He mentioned the weather and tsk tsk'd that she couldn't enjoy the beautiful sunshine. He didn't even bat an eyelash when she lunged at him, screaming and roaring. But he knew exactly how far the chain would let her go, and he stood just a breath away from it. There was a faint stirring in the air from where her nails barely missed his skin.

"Now, now, my love, is that the way to treat the man who has come to you with great news?" He smiled as she stopped struggling and looked at him suspiciously.

"What news?"

"I have found your reincarnation."

The woman froze. "Kikyo? Kikyo is…"

Naraku nodded with an almost sincere look of sadness on his face. "Yes, dead. Tragic. Though," he grinned, "I did manage to keep her soul." His smile widened. "I have kept all of their souls."

Her brown eyes opened wide in horror. "You didn't… didn't… you…"

Smiling indulgently, Naraku shook his head. "No, my love. I did not bring her back. You are the only one I have ever brought back." He reached forward to pat her on the head. "You are the only one who will ever be brought back."

She began to cry. "Please… stop… just let me die…"

His eyes flashed with anger. "NO. You are MINE!" He tugged ruthlessly on her hair, jerking her head up to look at him. "When I find the rest of the jewel I will bind you to me for eternity." Her weeping only made him angrier. "There will be no more reincarnations when I have it! Your soul will belong to ME and me alone!"

Taking a deep breath he let go of her hair, closed his eyes, and stood a little straighter. When he opened them again he was smiling.

"I found the girl. Her name is Kagome. She is powerful." His voice had lost its vicious edge and was now once again friendly. "I will have her hunt down the rest of the shards for me. When I have them I will use her life force and soul to bind the jewel together, then we will be together at last. You will have your soul back." He turned back to the elevator. "And I will have you, Midoriko."

Naraku was irritated that the woman had not seemed more excited about the prospect of getting back her soul. He knocked over a box of electronic components. After all, he was doing this for HER! He knocked over another box and howled with rage.

It wasn't long before the storeroom had been torn apart.

Once his temper had been sufficiently purged, Naraku straightened his clothes, smoothed his hair, and walked back out into the lobby. Grabbing the telephone he punched the four numbers it would take to connect him to the technicians' office.

"It's time I joined the game," he said.

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

An uneasy feeling just wouldn't let go of Inuyasha all day long. It had been two days since their last major battle, if you want to call having a wind demon just up and take off for no good reason a major battle.

Lack of a good battle wasn't the only thing bothering him. Kagome couldn't sense a single fragment of the jewel, but she also seemed to have that uneasy feeling. She had been fidgety all day, which in turn made Inuyasha fidgety. She kept looking for… for something. She hadn't been able to describe it to him. It made him nervous.

Looking over at his traveling companions Inuyasha glared. Miroku was more interested in flirting outrageously with Sango than in concentrating on finding a way out of the game. It was well past being funny and cute. Sango was getting more and more attached to the fire cat game sprite, cooing to it and stroking its fur. Shippo was busy playing games like the child he looked like. Their behavior was starting to worry him. _We look less like warriors and more like a group tourists on their way to a stinking picnic!_

"Inuyasha?"

The dog demon's eyes softened as he looked down at Kagome, who was resting on a fallen tree.

"Hmm?"

She paused, obviously trying to gather her thoughts. Inuyasha uncrossed his arms from in front of his chest and sat beside her.

"I can't sense any more jewels."

He shrugged. "You said that before. So what?"

Kagome picked up the half formed jewel and let it roll awkwardly in her palm. "Every since we got into this stupid game I could feel it pulling at me. All the pieces had their own bit of energy and… well… called to me. No matter how far away it was it would call. But there aren't any more. I can't hear or feel any more at all."

Inuyasha studied her eyes. She wasn't saying what she was really thinking. "What do you think that means?"

"I do believe that she means that our search is over," supplied Miroku, sporting a brand new red hand mark on his cheek. "Perhaps we are near the end of the game."

"Good to hear you remember this is a game," Inuyasha muttered.

Kagome shook her head. "That's impossible. The jewel is supposed to be whole. I know it is. We can't be near the end… there is still so many more pieces to collect. I just don't understand…"

"Maybe we should go ask the old hag."

"Inuyasha, that's rude." Kagome scolded. "It is a good idea though."

"Keh."

Grinning, the miko reached up and scratched Inuyasha behind the ears. "Good boy!"

"I ain't no DOG!" He jerked his head away, pinning his ears to his head. They were almost hidden in his silver hair.

Now that the group had a direction, they quickly gathered their supplies. Although Inuyasha still had that uncomfortable feeling, it felt good to start moving. Kaede might not have the answers they were looking for, but it was worth a shot. He glared at the back of Sango and Miroku. He knew that they still didn't trust him one hundred percent. Sometimes at night he would hear them whisper, questioning his humanity. _Go on one or two bloody rampages and suddenly I'm not trustworthy anymore…_

"Lemon meringue," said Kagome suddenly.

Inuyasha blinked. His feet stopped moving and he looked at the miko like she was crazy. Suddenly he felt a warm feeling blossoming in his chest and he couldn't stop the smile. Beyond a shadow of a doubt he realized that he was undeniably in love with the girl. He had an insane urge to laugh.

"Chocolate cream."

He smirked when Kagome raised an eyebrow and grinned while looking at his doggie ears. The other three companions looked back at them with some confusion. Shippo shrugged, made a comment about their sanity, and the group continued to walk in the direction of Kaede's village.

Somehow, the continuation of their game relaxed the dog demon. The fact that she was just as reluctant as he was to share their game made him feel even better. He filed away what her favorite pie was for future reference. Who knows when it may come in handy.

"Flower?" he asked in a hushed voice.

Kagome's eyes sparkled as she opened her mouth.

In the space of a heartbeat, Kagome disappeared. Inuyasha was in shock. He screamed her name frantically, causing the others to turn around, prepared for battle.

"KAGOME!"

Laughter was heard through the woods.

"It would seem that you are a failure as a protector, Inuyasha. Perhaps she would have been better served to have a toy poodle as her guard dog."

Inuyasha spun around. Rage was building inside him. His teeth were bared and his claws were ready to slice into flesh. He felt every bit the animal that Sango and Miroku had feared that he may become. Every bit as uncontrollable. He was ready to kill. All he wanted to do was tear apart the man who was standing in front of him, holding his Kagome by the throat.

"LET HER GO!"

The man in the baboon pelt laughed. "I don't think so, Inuyasha. You see, I need the girl. But I no longer need the rest of you."

"NARAKU!" Inuyasha screamed the name.

Miroku stood protectively in front of the demon slayer. Inuyasha would have thought that was funny if he wasn't two seconds away from going on a killing spree.

"Now that Kagome has fulfilled the quest, I will unplug the five of you and let you rest in peace. I will leave in the one to your brains, however. I will let you mull over your failure in this world while your bodies waste away in the real world."

"Five?" asked Shippo.

Miroku whispered to him, "Koga."

"Oh yeah… I almost forgot about him…"

Inuyasha pulled out his sword. "Get your hands off Kagome, NOW!"

Once again Naraku laughed, tightening his hold on her neck. The sound of her whimper nearly drove Inuyasha insane. "Or what? You have no hopes of defeating me here. This world and everything in it is mine. I control EVERYTHING!"

The dog demon lunged, but met with only air as Naraku disappeared. He reappeared only a few yards away from them, still laughing. The kicking and screaming miko in his grasp did not seem to affect him. Her teeth didn't even break the skin. In fact, he seemed terribly amused by her efforts to escape.

"I have come for what is mine," Naraku told them. "Enjoy the time you have left here." Once again Naraku disappeared, taking a screaming Kagome with him. All that was left was a baboon pelt and a yellow backpack.

With a roar, Inuyasha's world turned red.


	21. Fighting Flowers

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Nineteen: Fighting Flowers

Rage.

Pure unadulterated rage.

No amount of destruction could quench this thirst inside of him. He sunk his teeth and claws into everything in his path. Red eyes burned as the rage continued to grow, threatening to consume him.

"Someone stop him!" a woman's voice screamed.

The demon's gaze turned towards the voice. But it wasn't her voice. It wasn't the voice he was searching for. An ache was clawing at his gut, the only thing that could relieve this pain was to make everything vanish. If he got rid of everything else then surely he would find her. Then he saw the woman, the one who was a reminder of what had been stolen from him. She must be destroyed.

"Sango!"

A man clothed in purple leapt in front of the girl and raised a barrier as well as a full sized firecat demon. The demon clawed at the barrier, roaring viciously. Someone had to pay for the excruciating pain inside of him. He threw himself against the barrier, but it did not crack. He growled in frustration as he continued to slash at the two protected humans.

"Do something!" the woman yelled.

"I am open to suggestions!"

A sound behind him caused the demon to stop his assault on the barrier. The sound of his name drifted softly towards him. He spun around and froze.

It was her.

Dark hair blew softly in the breeze. Her green skirt much too short for his liking with perverts like the one inside the barrier around. Her hands were clasped in front of her chest as if pleading with him.

It was her.

The fire in his blood began to fade. The relief coursing through his body made his legs weak. He staggered towards her.

It was her.

It was…

"Kagome…"

The girl opened her arms to him with a smile on her face. He dropped to his knees in front of her and wrapped his arms around her waist. His shoulders were shaking, but he didn't care. She was back. She was here.

He breathed in deeply, to bathe in her scent.

What the…? Quickly he released the girl and looked up at her with eyes of gold. The scent was wrong. It wasn't her scent.

Twitch twitch.

His eyes narrowed as he saw the bushy fox tail twitching behind the miko. The girl let out a nervous laugh. Pop! The fox kit stood in front of him.

"It's the only thing I could think of!" Shippo defended himself.

He prepared himself for a pounding… but it never came. The little demon looked up. Inuyasha was no longer glaring at him. His eyes no longer full of anger. It was much much worse. They were filled with despair. It hurt too much to look at him, so quietly Shippo slipped away to where Sango, Miroku, and Kirara were watching.

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"Tell me again why we are dragging around the backpack," asked Miroku as he glanced at the dog demon clutching the yellow pack to his chest.

Inuyasha growled without looked back.

"None of us can use it. It's completely useless," he tried to reason.

Snarl.

Shippo was beginning to look a little concerned at how tightly Inuyasha was holding the backpack. The worry was how quickly it would take for the dog demon to drop the pack and start hacking up the monk. It was only a few hours since he had gone insane and went on a tree killing spree... almost a friend killing spree too.

"Leave it alone, Miroku," Shippo cautioned.

"But it…"

"It's HERS!" Inuyasha snapped.

Sango took ahold of Miroku's hand. From a distance it seem like she was simply holding his hand. In actuality, however, she was squeezing his hand painfully and digging her nails into his skin.

"One more word about it," she hissed quietly, "And you won't have to worry about Inuyasha tearing you to pieces."

The monk forced a smile. "As you wish."

Shippo kept a nervous eye on all his friends. Inuyasha may not be a rabid killing machine at the moment, but you never knew if he might go over the edge again if the right buttons were pushed. And it looked like the monk was finding all the buttons and using every single one of them. Much as Shippo loved Kagome, if he heard her name pass from Miroku's lips one more time he might just pounce on the monk himself and see how well his own teeth and claws worked.

There was still so far to go. He wondered if they would make it to Kaede's in one piece.

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The first thing Kagome was aware of was just how bad her head hurt. It felt like someone was pounding on it with an ice pick right through the temple. When she tried to rub the pain away she realized that she couldn't. Slowly she opened her eyes and noticed that she was chained to a wall.

"You are awake, young miko."

Kagome sat straight up. Her mouth was hanging open as she looked to her right. What was more surprising than another prisoner, was another prisoner who looked like she was an older version of herself!

"Who are you? Where am I? Where's Inuyasha? What's going on?"

The woman smiled gently.

"Difficult questions, child. Perhaps if you asked them one at a time…"

Kagome tugged on the chain, locating where it connected to the wall. She turned to brace her foot against the wall as she began to pull on the chain. "Where am I?"

The woman smiled sadly. "You are in my home."

The girl's hands stilled. "Your home?"

"I have been imprisoned here for longer than you can imagine. It is now the only home I have."

"Where is it though?"

"You are no longer in the game, young miko. You are back in the world. Naraku brought you back."

The girl turned her attention back to the chains. "My name's Kagome. Why did Naraku bring me back? Where are my friends? Are they here too?"

The older woman sighed. "Your friends did not accompany you back to this world. They are still in the game. As to why Naraku brought you back… I wish I could tell you happier news."

"Just tell me."

"It is a long story."

Kagome snorted. "It doesn't look like I'm going anywhere, now does it?"

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"Once there was a man named Onigumo. He loved a miko. Her name was Midoriko. She was kind and powerful. Though Onigumo was a thief, she nursed him back to health after his body had been burned beyond recognition. He told her of his love, but she told him that she could not return it."

"Okay, so are you going to make a point anytime soon?" asked a very grumpy dog demon, leaning his head on his hand that was propped up on Kagome's yellow backpack.

"Shh, don't be so rude," Sango admonished.

"Please continue, lady Kaede," said Miroku cordially.

The old woman took a sip of tea from the cup in front of her. Miroku could swear that she was taking her time just to annoy Inuyasha. Surely not.

"Onigumo desired more than just the miko. He also lusted after the jewel that she guarded, the Jewel of the Four Souls. With it he would be the most powerful being of all time. But he could not win her heart."

"Cuz he was an evil moth..."

"INUYASHA!" Sango smacked him.

"Quit smacking me!"

"Quit being a potty mouth!"

"Quit bossing me around!"

"Quit acting like a total jac..."

"SANGO!" Miroku gasped. "Please excuse them, lady Kaede. They simply miss Ka... uh... our companion who... recently... uh... left our company unexpectedly." He breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he missed all those land mine words and phrases that might set off the dog demon. He turned his attention back to the elderly miko, completely missing the tick developing in Inuyasha's eye.

With a sigh the miko continued her story.

"He vowed to possess Midoriko and the jewel. He gave up his body to a host of demons. However, he did not anticipate that the demons would merge and consume him. He became a different monster altogether. His name was Naraku."

"Didn't you say this was, what, a thousand years ago?" asked an incredulous fox kit.

"Stop interrupting the old hag, Shippo."

"Oh, like you're a great example."

"Both of you SHUT UP!" Considering it was the first time that the elderly lady had raised her voice since... well... ever... it shut them up. Slowly she stood to her feet and walked outside of her hut. The group followed as she walked into the back where beautiful blossoms flourished.

"What a beautiful garden, Kaede!"

"Thank you Sango."

"Who cares about the stupid flowers? Just get on with telling us how to get out of this place so we can save Kagome!"

Kaede closed her eyes. Miroku guessed that she was trying to summon the will to NOT purify the demon standing in front of her. He tried to keep the amused chuckling to himself. Though he caught Sango's eye and they shared a smile.

"Do you know what kind of flower this is?" Kaede asked as she placed a tiny flower in the palm of Sango's hand.

"A cherry blossom?"

The old miko smiled. "Yes. It is also known as a Sakura." She sat down on a bench underneath the tree. "Sakura was the first of Midoriko's reincarnations. She was kind and powerful. The jewel shards called to her, and she found three of them almost by accident. But she was tricked by the demon Naraku, and she lost not only her life, but her soul to him."

"How is that possible?" asked the monk.

She smiled at him. "Before Midoriko perished she swore that Naraku would never have the jewel. She took a sacred arrow and shattered it. The pieces blew in the wind and scattered across the land. But Naraku would not let her die. He happened upon a shard of the jewel, and used it to capture Midoriko's spirit before she could die. He has kept her prisoner. He used the jewel to contain her soul, just as he captured the soul of the young miko Sakura."

Kaede plucked a different flower. This one she gave to Shippo. "Do you know the name of this flower?" The fox demon shook his head. "It is a Mitsumata. She was the next reincarnation. She was strong and had a good heart. Naraku waited until she collected five jewel shards before he collected her soul as well." She paused. "She was only fifteen at the time."

Another flower was plucked. She turned to Miroku, handing him the deep pink flower. "Do you know this flower?"

Miroku looked at the flower. "It looks like a type of azalea."

Kaede nodded approvingly. "Very good."

"How would he know something like that?" Inuyasha whispered. Sango and Shippo both shrugged, as clueless as the dog demon.

Miroku glared at them. "I buy a lot of flowers, okay?"

"Probably for all the women he tried to get into bed," Inuyasha whispered a little louder. Shippo nodded and Sango glared.

"It is a type of azalea, to be more specific, it is a Satsuki."

"Another reincarnation?"

"Yes, Inuyasha. Another reincarnation. She was quick tempered and good with a bow. She displeased Naraku more than any of the others. He took great pleasure in her prolonging her death before stealing her soul."

A pretty blue bellflower was placed in Inuyasha's hand. He didn't want to hear what she was planing to say next. He didn't want to think about what it might mean.

"This flower is a Kikyo. I believe you already met that miko."

"Yeah, she shot me. So how come you didn't ask me if I knew what the flower was?" He tried to sound insulted, but he was just too happy that the flower wasn't called a Kagome. After all, all these flowers were for the dead mikos.

"Were you a reincarnation as well, lady Kaede?" He gestured to the flowers next to them. "If I'm not mistaken, the name of these flowers are Kaede."

"That is the name of the flower, but I am no reincarnation. Kikyo was my sister. Yet my soul was taken as well when I attempted to shield my older sister. My soul was trapped, but Naraku found it amusing to let me grow old and wither until he let death claim me completely. I was as helpless as he was when Midoriko had been tending him."

"Why?"

Kaede smiled. "Because he is evil, Sango. And it pleases him to cause pain."

"Was she the last?"

"No, Miroku, Kikyo was not the last. Botan," she gestured to yet more flowers, "she was the last. Before Kagome was born."

Shippo sat next to Inuyasha, who had been unusually quiet. He sighed, Kaede had said the K-word. But luckily Inuyasha hadn't gone rabid dog on them yet. It was a good sign.

"Why does he track down the reincarnations?" asked Sango as she twirled the flower in her hand.

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"So, because Naraku is so weirdly obsessed with you, he tracks down all of your reincarnations and murders them?"

The older woman nodded. "Yes, but only after they tracked down shards for him."

Kagome cocked her head to one side. "You don't look a thousand or so years old. How are you alive?"

Sad eyes that were nearly identical to her own looked at her. "Magic. He has my soul contained in the Jewel of Four Souls. This ... body... of mine... it shouldn't exist. He took my bones and earth and had a witch create a body. I am little more than a clay pot with a sliver of a soul."

She felt bad for the prisoner beside her. She seemed really nice, and it must be just awful to not even have a real body. "So, you've been alive all these years?"

The woman scoffed. "I hardly call THIS being alive. I have been tortured and imprisoned for longer than you can imagine."

Just when you thought things couldn't get worse, the lady brings up one more item that makes Kagome hate Naraku even more. Was he planning on keeping her forever? Why would he want someone who didn't love him? She wished that there was something that she could do to help.

Kagome's eyes lit up and she began searching her pockets. "I have the shards that I collected, maybe I can free you somehow!"

"No, you do not have the shards. They were taken from you when Naraku brought you here. He allowed you to find them. He was testing you. He only lacks one more shard. He is planning on using you to find it."

The younger girl gulped. "And then?"

"And then he will kill you."

"Yes. I can only pray that he kills you quickly."

Kagome was outraged. "WHAT?"

Midoriko looked at her with a deadly serious expression on her face. "He will kill you, Kagome. There is no doubt about that. I have seen what happens when he decides to draw out a death. Believe me, child, you should also be praying for a quick death."

Kagome gulped.


	22. Heart and Soul

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Nineteen: Heart and Soul

"Isn't reincarnation when a person dies and the soul is born into another body?" asks Shippo as he warmed his hands by the fire.

"Aye."

"Then how is it possible for a soul to be reborn if it never… well… left?" Three sets of eyes turned their attention onto the elderly miko.

"You ask how Midoriko's soul could be reborn into my sister and into Kagome and the others if her soul never left, is that correct?"

"Yeah."

She sighed. "It is unusual, I will admit. It is my belief that the heart and soul were so big, that only a portion could be captured. A sliver really. The strength of her soul allowed for the majority of it to escape from Naraku when he killed the body. The remainder is then reborn. Each time the soul is reborn it has a small gap missing. I believe that the soul that is reborn is so strong that it fills in these missing slivers with more power."

"So will each reincarnation be more powerful?" asked Miroku curiously.

"But that can only go on so long, right? I mean, you can't expect that those gaps can be filled forever. Wouldn't the soul become unstable?" Eventually it would crumble and collapse wouldn't it?"

"That is a very good possibility, Sango." The miko turned her attention back to her tea.

"Are you saying Kagome could implode or just fall apart or something?"

Kaede shrugged her shoulders at Shippo's question and took another sip of tea as she made a non-committal humming sound.

"Is the additional power why Naraku destroys the reincarnations?" asks the demon exterminator. "Does he want that power for himself or to power up this Midoriko person to bring her back to life?"

"That is another good question. One, I fear, that I do not have the answers for. He could be destroying them to gather the souls in much the same way that the shards of the jewel were gathered, to complete Midoriko's soul. It is also possible that he destroys the reincarnations because he feels that they should not exist. Perhaps he believes that he will not possess Midoriko completely until all of the reincarnations are destroyed."

"Just SHUT UP! All of you!"

Everyone turned to the dog demon in surprise. He had been silent for so long that they nearly forgot his presence. "I am SICK to DEATH of you talking about Kagome like she's a THING!" He got up from his spot on the floor and flexed his claws. "JUST SHUT UP!"

Pottery rattled as Inuyasha grabbed the yellow backpack and stomped out of the hut, knocking down anything in his path.

"Please forgive our hot tempered friend," said Miroku apologetically. "He is concerned about our traveling companion."

"SHE'S NOT JUST A TRAVELING COMPANION YOU STINKIN' MONK!"

Miroku gave a small smile, ignoring the sound of trees being torn up and mutilated. "Our hot tempered and hearing enhanced friend is concerned about our traveling companion and dear friend."

Once the sounds of mauling got a little further from the hut, the group continued their discussion, though this time with slightly hushed voices.

"Inuyasha saw one of the other reincarnations… your sister."

"Yes, Shippo. The soul of my sister is indeed in this game with us, though she is only a shadow and no longer a woman."

"But how is that possible? I mean, this is just a game after all."

Kaede sighed. "Perhaps you should cease to think of this world as a game, young kit. It is more of a mixture of technology and magic." She paused, but each was waiting for her to continue. She took another infuriatingly long sip of tea before continuing. "Your bodies are hooked up to a machine. It keeps your body working. It feeds you, lets you breathe, and allows your body to dispose of wastes."

"Ewww." Sango looked distinctly uncomfortable at the thought.

"But your mind and your soul are not in the computer. That would be impossible. A video game is something that you are familiar with, what you are comfortable with. It is a reality, of sorts, that you could accept. While your bodies were at rest, a spell was cast upon you. Your souls were absorbed into the Shikon Jewel as well. Now that Naraku has no more use for you he will let your bodies deteriorate and die."

"Then we'll just become shadows as well…"

"Aye monk, that you will."

They sat quietly, staring at the floor. Getting out of a video game was one thing, there were always ways to circumvent security settings in the computers, cheat codes for games, backdoors… but now they had to find a way to get their souls out of a jewel. Was there really such a thing as magic? Real magic?

"There must be a way out," said Shippo. "I mean, we've been all over this game, er… jewel… whatever… anyhow, we've covered almost every inch of this place and the only other priestess we found was Kikyo. That means that the others must have somehow escaped. So all we have to do is figure out how they did it."

Kaede shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry, kit, but they others did not escape."

"Where are they?" asked Sango, though she wasn't really sure that she really wanted to know. So far they hadn't had a whole lot of good news.

"My sister was an especially strong miko. When she was captured she began to seek out the others. Over time she absorbed them into herself, making her stronger. Once that piece of the soul was absorbed, the other disappeared."

"That sounds a little gruesome," commented Shippo as he flicked his bushy tail back and forth. "Soul cannibalism?"

"Naraku is a very strong demon. His power was too strong for Midoriko. Your Kagome is no match for him. It is a shame that she does not possess the missing pieces of her soul. Perhaps then she would have the strength to save herself and defeat him."

"But if Midoriko wasn't strong enough how could Kagome be? I mean, Midoriko had her entire soul, Kagome's evidently has lots of chunks missing from it."

"Yes, Sango. But remember how the soul filled in those gaps with power. If the missing pieces were gathered and absorbed back into young Kagome, then she will be more powerful than even the original complete soul of Midoriko."

Miroku sighed as he stood up, stretching his sore muscles. "But this is all speculation."

"Aye."

Shippo looked at the elderly miko quizzically. "How do you know all this stuff, anyhow?"

Kaede smiled. "Kikyo."

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Kagome's entire body hurt. She didn't know what it was about the chains that bound her, but it felt as if all of her energy was being sucked out of her body. Instinct told her to fight, but she didn't know what she was supposed to be fighting against. She was too afraid to sleep.

Earlier that morning Naraku had paid them a visit, no longer in the baboon pelt, but back into his regular slacks and sports coat that made him look like a normal business man. He had been pleasant. Very pleasant. The kind of pleasant that made a person suspicious, especially considering he was keeping her captive.

"You say you can feel Kikyo?"

Midoriko smiled. "You have to sleep sometime, young Kagome. Staying awake will not keep the spell from working."

Kagome shrugged and shifted her position. "Yeah, but talking will help keep me from, you know, completely freaking out here. So, you can feel Kikyo?"

"Yes. As I can feel you. We are tied together."

"Because we're the same person?"

Midoriko turned to face Kagome. "No. When a soul is reborn, it becomes a new and unique individual. Sharing the same soul does not make us the same. You are shaped by your life experiences and are your own person. I can feel you though, but that does not make you me."

"Can you talk to Kikyo?"

"Sometimes. And sometimes I hear her."

"Could you hear me?"

The older woman smiled sadly. "No, I can not hear you. You are still alive. But I can feel your soul. It calls to me."

Kagome made a face. She wasn't too sure how she felt about that statement.

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"So, you're telling me that the old hag wants us to track down her sister?" Inuyasha crossed his arms in front of his chest and glared at the monk.

"Yes."

"The one that shot me with an arrow in the chest and pinned me to a tree?"

Miroku winced. "Yes."

"The one that tried to shoot Kagome?"

"Yes."

"Now why would I want to do that, monk?"

Taking a deep breath to calm his fraying nerves, the monk spoke through gritted teeth. "For the last time, Inuyasha, Kikyo has the rest of Kagome's soul. If we can reunite her with Kagome, then she has a chance at defeating Naraku."

"Tell me, monk," Inuyasha spat, "What happens if Kikyo assimilates Kagome's soul instead?"

"Highly unlikely, my dog eared friend. Kagome is alive and Kikyo is already dead. The soul would choose the live body, not the dead. I'm impressed you know what the word 'assimilate' means though."

Inuyasha ignored the insult. "What if Kikyo is stronger? She has all those other souls sucked up, doesn't she?"

"But she is dead. They all are. They will go into Kagome."

"And what about this Midoriko person? If she's still alive, won't the souls try to go back to her since she's the original?"

Miroku sighed. "If that's the case, then Kagome's soul is already gone."

Oops.

One of the monk's powers must be luck, since only moments before the sharp claws could reach his throat he was whisked away by Sango and Kirara.

"That mouth is going to get you in trouble one of these days," the exterminator grumbled. "And don't comment on that, you pervert." She turned to face the demon below her who was currently yelling obscenities. "Kaede thinks that we can use Kikyo to get us out of here since she is still connected to Midoriko, and likely to Kagome too."

Inuyasha stopped. Sango's heart broke when she saw the anguish in his eyes. But she didn't miss the small flicker of hope.

"It's our only chance to find Kagome."

"Feh." He cracked his knuckles before reaching down to pick up the yellow pack and throw it over his shoulders. "What are we waiting around here for? Let's go find the dead girl and get out of this place."

Sango turns to Miroku with a smirk. "See how easy that was?"

"I HEARD THAT!"


	23. Hunting

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twenty Three: Hunting

_Demon! Monster! Contemptuous beast! Animal! Die demon!_

"How are we supposed to find a dead priestess anyhow?" grumbled Inuyasha as he hefted the yellow backpack over his right shoulder.

Kaede sighed heavily. "I can find my sister, Inuyasha."

"But she's dead. Shippo, get out of the pack, there's nothin' in there you can get to."

"Of course she is dead since your friend Kagome is her reincarnation. It is the body that carriers her soul that we are looking for."

"Uh huh, but I tore that body up into itty bitty pieces. There's nothing left that couldn't be sucked through a straw."

"What disturbing imagery," Miroku commented.

They had only been traveling together for a couple of minutes and already Inuyasha wanted to ditch them. He sighed. Kagome would be ticked off if he abandoned them though. But they were so annoying and sooooo slow!

Shippo's head popped out of the bag, not even finding a piece of lint in the bag. "I had forgotten about that. That was actually a good question, Inuyasha."

Once again Inuyasha reminded himself that he wasn't allowed to kill his friends. Dang it.

"Need I remind you once again that what you are experiencing is not real? This is not only not real life as you know it, but it is also not truly a virtual reality game like you originally thought."

"Yeah yeah, jewel game, got it. But dead is dead. What will finding her remains do anyhow? Do we bottle 'em up and take 'em to Kagome?"

Sango rolled her eyes, "Honestly, Inuyasha, have some respect for Kaede's sister."

"Keh. Respect? Hey, I'm the one that was shot by her sister! And her sister is the one who almost killed Kagome! Soooo sorry that I'm not all choked up about hackin' her up!"

"Inuyasha!"

"Leave me alone, Sango," he growled, tightening his grip on the yellow bag. Every part of him was screaming to avenge the loss of Kagome. If it wasn't for his companions he'd be giving into that blood lust. He wasn't sure if he should be thankful to them or resentful. But if there was even the slightest chance of finding Kagome...

The silence that followed was thick. Group members walked sullenly and silently, each lost in their own thoughts. Would they ever find Kagome and Koga? Would they ever get out of the game? How are they supposed to eat now that Kagome isn't here to get food for them?

Kaede finally broke the silence.

"To answer your question, my sister's false body is still intact."

Inuyasha scoffed. "It ain't, old lady, you can trust me on that one." For a change he decided not to go into much detail. _Demon! Monster! Contemptuous beast! Animal! Die demon! _Seeing Kikyo dead in his head reminded him of what might be happening to Kagome. And right now he couldn't think about that. Not and keep sane.

"You forget, demon, that this is not reality. Have you not wondered why you fight hundreds of wasp demons that all look the same? Boar demons are all exact replicas in your battles, are they not? In THIS reality, in this game, bodies can not truly die. At least... the ones that belong here can not."

"So... even though Inuyasha shre... killed Kikyo, her body... reassembled?"

"Aye, Shippo. Something like that."

"Cool!"

Inuyasha cursed. "So I didn't really kill her?"

"Nay."

He cursed again. And again. "You mean none of the things we killed are permanently dead?"

"I believe that is what she is telling us, Inuyasha," said Miroku. Even though his friends all looked a little disappointed, he was glad that he hadn't actually killed anything.

"So we didn't kill anything at all?" whined Inuyasha. "They just keep coming back?"

"Yes, Inuyasha... you must get past that fact..." Miroku couldn't help but tease his friend a bit. Knowing he wasn't technically a killer made him feel almost giddy in relief.

"Then what happened to the other mikos?" asked Shippo. "If no one can die how can they be gone?"

Kaede's eyes twinkled. "You are a smart one, aren't you child?"

Shippo nodded solemnly. "Yes."

"A soul can not die here... but it CAN be absorbed. The souls, or pieces of the soul as it were, did not disappear, they merely merged to become one. Does that answer your question?"

"Yeah, that makes sense." He paused. "But what about the jewel thing? Supposedly the jewel came from Kagome, but if it came from her then how could we already be in it?"

Kaede stopped walking and rubbed her temples. "You are a curious one."

"Quit stallin' and answer the kid's question."

"Inuyasha!"

"Stop scolding me, Sango! You're not... you just can't! So stop it."

Sango's mouth shut. She wasn't Kagome.

"Bet Kagome is glad to be gone so she doesn't have to put up with your bad attitude anymore."

Inuyasha dropped the bag and made a grab for the kit. "You better run, brat! When I catch you I'm gonna KILL YOU!"

Sango and Miroku stopped walking and began setting their weapons on the ground. They explained to Kaede that Inuyasha would be chasing the kit for a while and that they should take the chance to rest up while they had it. Kaede eased herself down beside the other two humans.

While Shippo was busy dodging certain death, Kaede explained to Sango and Miroku about the jewel. Yes, at the beginning of the game Kagome felt a jewel being ripped from her body. Yes, the jewel belongs to Kagome to protect. Yes, it was real. But what Kagome experienced was actually a memory of when the jewel was physically ripped from Midoriko.

"But she even has a scar," argued Sango.

Kaede shrugged. "Does she really? Or does she think that she does so she does?"

"That was... one of the most confusing sentences I've ever heard," Sango whispered to Miroku who simply chuckled.

"Remember, slayer, that this is not reality as we know it."

It wasn't long before Inuyasha showed back up with a bawling kit. After a few rude remarks the group began moving in the direction Kaede indicated. Along the way Miroku explained to the two demons what Kaede had said. They agreed that the whole thing was, indeed, confusing.

One thing that the group noticed after walking for a few hours was that there were no more random battles. For a bunch of people just itching to blow off a little steam, not guilt free, this was a great disappointment.

"Where are all the demons?" asked Shippo as he draped himself across Sango's shoulder so that he could play with Kirara's twitching tail.

"There is no need for keeping up the charade that this is a game, young one. So the game has ceased."

Sango cleared her throat. "Was all of this… the game… capturing all of us… was this just a big elaborate scheme to get Kagome?" Kaede answered with silence. "So we're just expendable extras? Kagome is the only one that matters?"

Inuyasha growled threateningly. "You better watch your tone of voice, Sango. It's not Kagome's fault."

The incensed demon slayer turned on him, angry. "YOU don't tell ME what to do. I can use any tone I want!"

Claws flexed.

"Everyone just calm down. Sango doesn't blame Kagome for any of this, Inuyasha. She knows it's not her fault." Miroku turned to Sango. "Inuyasha is being overly protective of Kagome. We're all upset about this. None of us are particularly happy to be pawns in this game." He took a breath and hoped he wasn't going to regret what he was going to say next. You can never know how temperamental dog demons will react. "I, for one, hate the thought that we were instrumental in bringing Kagome to Naraku.

Luckily the comment didn't cause the expiration date on his life to move up a few more notches. Inuyasha was looking away. He turned his attention back to Sango and saw her eyes lowered to the ground. It wasn't his intention to make everyone feel guilty, he just wanted them to stop fighting.

"Kagome would have hated to see us fight like this."

"Don't..." snapped Inuyasha with a suspiciously strangled sounding voice. "Don't you dare talk about her in the past tense."

"Forgive me. Of course I meant that when she hears about this she will not be very happy with us."

Naturally, as it happened every single time there was a discussion that even remotely indicated that Kagome might be d-e-a-d, Shippo began crying. Sango scooped him up in her arms and patted him on the head. Even Kirara tried to console him by meowing and touching his cheek with her soft paw.

It took a few minutes, but eventually the tears turned into miserable sniffing and snuffling. Inuyasha made a comment about wishing they had packed some tissues for all the weepy humans.

But Shippo did not stop sniffing. In fact, he began sniffing harder. He sat up quickly and darted off of Sango and leapt onto Miroku's head.

"Hey!"

Shippo turned to the group warily. "I smell something."

Inuyasha stopped walking and started sniffing. Then he started growling. He knew what the fox kit was smelling. Wolves.

What to do? What to do? If he tells Sango and Miroku about Koga coming towards them they would guilt him into not killing him by getting all weepy about Kagome again. It just wasn't right that they could use her name to get him to do whatever they wanted. It was worse than the stupid rosary. Manipulators, the whole lot of them.

But if he doesn't tell them that he can smell the wolves, and Koga, then he was free to go find him and put the the theory that they couldn't die to the test... on Koga of course. If it didn't work and he didn't live... well... tough noogies, right? He looked to Shippo, the only one who could rat him out. The kid looked like he was having a mental debate himself. Maybe he was remembering when Koga had caused Kagome to bleed... more than once. Maybe... just maybe... the kid would back him up on this.

Inuyasha smiled. The kit looked like he came to a decision. With as much as he loved Kagome too, there was no way he wasn't going to take this chance to get a little revenge.

"It's Koga."

_The RAT! I'm going to wring his scrawny little neck for this! I was so close to getting to kill him!_ Inuyasha glared at his companions who all brightened up at the mention of their friend's name. Every last one of them was a traitor in his book. Since he no longer felt like hanging out with the group he hopped up into a tree to watch.

It took longer than any of them figured for Koga to reach the group. When he finally did catch up to them he was slightly out of breath and flushed. Curious, Inuyasha crept to the edge of a low hanging branch and sat.

"Out of shape?" asked the dog demon snidely. A single finger from the wolf was the only reply he received.

"Hey Sango, Miroku, Brat." The wolf demon looked around. "Who's the old lady? And where's Kagome?" Koga sniffed the air. "I don't smell her anywhere." He growled threateningly at the group. "You didn't leave her behind did you? Are you crazy? She'll get killed!"

The wolf stopped his rant only when he saw every head bowed. Inuyasha's ears pinned to his head as the wolf demon dared to turn accusing eyes in his direction. They snarled at each other for awhile before Shippo spoke up.

"Your eyes look normal."

Koga blinked his pretty blue eyes dumbly as he faced the kit. "Huh?"

"Your eyes don't look funny anymore. You remember us?"

"Of course I remember you. What's going on? What happened to Kagome?"

Inuyasha huffed and leapt away as Sango and Miroku began filling Koga in on what happened since they arrived. He couldn't stand to listen to any of them anymore. They were wasting time with that fool. Once he reached a safe difference he sat on the ground with his back against a tree. _I miss Kagome._

_What's your favorite cartoon? What's your favorite pizza? What's your favorite season/ What is your favorite quote? _Inuyasha's head filled with questions he never asked in their game. He let his head fall to his bent knees and drew them in close to his chest, wrapping his arms tightly around them. A Kagome-less life... he couldn't even imagine it. He couldn't allow himself to think of it. Yet the tears still came.

By the time the others caught up with him he had composed himself, all traces of emotion wiped away ruthlessly. Everyone looked like they had just been through a war. They were too slow.

"Pick up the pace, people!" yelled the dog demon. "We have to find the dead miko."

"Can't you at least refer to her as Kikyo?" asked Sango.

"Feh."

Miroku sighed and stretched. "We should find a spot to rest for the night."

"No."

"We're tired."

"No, Miroku. No stopping."

The monk glared at him uncharacteristically. "We will drop from exhaustion, Inuyasha. Sango, Kaede, and I are not demons. We don't have the strength or endurance to keep up this pace."

Inuyasha shrugged. "We're not stopping. We have to find the dead priestess."

"Kikyo."

"We need to get out of here," he argued, completely ignoring the irritable demon slayer's comment. "In case you have forgotten, monk, we have no food. None of us can buy food. Only Kagome could ever buy anything. If we don't get out of here soon we are all going to starve to death. Still want to rest for the night, MONK?"

Miroku took a deep breath. "Much as I would love to continue on, I don't see how that will be possible. We are, after all, only human."

"Miroku is right. We can rest for a few hours and then keep moving."

"I said 'no', Sango. I meant it." He stomped over to Sango and pulled the fire cat demon out of her arms. "Transform Kirara." With a meow the cat did as she was told. "Sango, Shippo, and Miroku can ride Kirara. Koga and I will take turns with the old hag."

"Kirara can't carry three of us indefinitely!"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes at Sango. "Fine! When she gets tired we'll let her rest while we all walk. But we go until she gets tired."

"What about when I get tired?"

Inuyasha ignored the wolf demon as he threw an outraged Kaede onto his back. It took a little maneuvering to get her on and still keep hold of the backpack. He ignored Koga's offer to at least take the bag. "Let's get moving!"

The travelers continued on throughout the remainder of the day and well into the night. All comments and complaints were ignored by their self appointed leader. Unless it was a lead on the dead woman they were hunting, he didn't want to hear it. It took a few hours, but eventually they realized that nothing they said was going to cause him to let up the brutal pace. It was Shippo who finally told them to leave him alone.

By the time the morning sun peaked over the mountain tops, everyone was tired and cranky. What was worse, the only thing they could seem to talk about was food.

"Can't we fish?" asked Shippo once Inuyasha indicated that they could stop for a few minutes to rest.

"Nay, young one. There are no fish in these rivers. There is no game to hunt. There is nothing alive in this land except for the five of you." Kaede gingerly let herself down from the dog demon's back before he decided to dump her on the ground. She stretched her arms towards the sky as she tried to work out the cramps in her body from the ride.

"But I'm so hungry!" he whined pitifully. "I wish Kagome was here!"

Miroku eyed the yellow pack as Inuyasha set it on the ground and sat beside it. "If only one of us were able to use that pack. Is there any sort of spell you can put on the pack, Kaede? It is full of food."

The elderly woman shook her head sadly. "Only the girl can use it."

"What about Sango? She's a girl too." He moved to pull the pack away from Inuyasha to give to the demon slayer, but was stopped short by a sound that he had only ever heard before on a horror show with the rabid dog... He didn't need a translator to know that if he touched Kagome's bag he would lose some vital body parts.

"Nay, only Kagome can use the pack. It is hers and hers alone."

Making more pitiful sounds, Shippo crawled to the pack and climbed in.

"Oi brat, get out of there."

"But it smells like Kagome." Inuyasha snorted, but left the kit alone.

"How come Shippo gets to touch the sacred pack?" grumbled Miroku to the girl standing beside him. Sango hid her smile behind her hand.

Kirara shrunk down into her cute kitten form and immediately went to sleep. Koga dropped down to the ground beside her and laid down as well to steal in a few winks while he could.

But before the wolf demon could get in that first wink, he felt a pair of eyes staring down at him. He looked up to see Shippo staring at him intently from the inside of the yellow pack.

"Koga wasn't with us... so how did he survive without Kagome feeding him?" He turned his gaze onto Sango and Miroku as well. "And you guys weren't with us for the longest time. How did you eat?"

"Kid, I don't remember a thing until the day before yesterday." Koga closed his eyes and willed himself back to sleep.

Shippo looked at Miroku. "How did you eat?"

"I... I don't remember eating... at least not until I ran into you guys. What about you, Sango?"

The demon slayer shrugged. "I don't think I did. How did we not starve? I don't understand." She walked over to the elderly miko who was still stretching. "Kaede?"

Sigh. "What do you recall of your times before you met up with Kagome?" She held up her hand to keep Sango from answering. "You recall pictures and emotions. But did you actually feel anything? Are you so certain you were actually there? I know the visions you saw of your loved ones, but that is all they were."

"I don't understand..."

A hand touched Sango's hand. "You think I am touching you, but you feel no warmth. I also do not truly exist." She smiled and withdrew her hand. "You were correct when you said that Naraku used all of you to get Kagome. You were kept in stasis until you were needed, false memories were implanted. While out of the young miko's sight you were simply existing, learning your part to play and waiting. But now that she has gone you are existing on your own. That is why the wolf recalls you as friends once more. That is why you feel hunger and thirst. That is why your bodies will soon die."

"Cheerful, isn't she?" asks Koga with his eyes still shut.

"Yeah, a regular Polly Sunshine," grumbled Inuyasha. "Haven't you found that dead girl yet?" he yelled.

"No."

After letting the group rest for exactly one hour, Inuyasha hustled them along to keep them going. This time Kaede rode with Koga. The morning quickly turned into the afternoon and everyone's mood darkened. It wasn't until Kaede told them that she felt the presence of her sister... at last... that they felt a spark of hope.

They hunted for the priestess for hours since Kaede couldn't pinpoint an exact location. Since there was no more threat of demon attacks they felt comfortable breaking up to go searching.

It was Koga who finally found the young woman who looked like a slightly older version of Kagome. It wasn't the fact that Koga was the one who found her that irked Inuyasha so much, it was the fact that he was walking with her hand in hand back to the point that they had designated earlier as their meeting spot. The wolf looked entirely too cozy with her.

"Kikyo."

"Kaede."

"Doesn't that just give you the warm fuzzies?" asked Shippo.

"Oh yeah, they just ooze sisterly affection," agreed Miroku.

Fighting his desire to rip Koga's hand from Kikyo's, Inuyasha asked, "So we have her. Now what?"

"Now we pray for a miracle."


	24. Breaking Barriers

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twenty Four: Breaking Barriers

"Pray for a miracle? THAT'S your great plan?"

Inuyasha was furious. He couldn't believe that they had been pinning all their hopes on some weird game sprite/dead spirit person. Heck, they didn't even know what she really was! His claws dug into the ground as he was crouched low, alternating between glaring at the old woman and the wolf demon who was standing a breath away from the dead woman who looked so much like Kagome.

"I can't believe we even LISTENED to you, hag! Kagome has been trapped with that monster for who knows how long! And 'pray for a miracle' is the best solution you got? She could be DEAD!" His voice broke at the end and he snarled to cover it up.

"Not to mention," added Shippo almost as an afterthought, "That we're gonna die too if we don't get out of here soon."

Kaede ignored the two demons and pulled out a small pouch. She reached in and pulled out a pinch of some sort of powder. She began sprinkling it around the clearing, chanting something that none of their group could understand.

"Oi! Don't ignore me, old woman!"

"What is she doing?" asked Sango softly to the monk at her side, not even bothering to try to keep the dog demon from harassing the priestess this time. She was hungry and tired and in no mood to fight with Inuyasha.

"It looks like she is performing some sort of ritual."

"What kind?"

Miroku turned to the demon slayer and gave her a lopsided smile that caused her cheeks to pinken. "As much as I appreciate your vote of confidence in my knowledge of all things spiritual, I'm afraid that I'm not really a true monk and don't know as much as I would like to."

Blushing a little bit more, Sango tried to shrug off her embarrassment. "Well, I thought maybe you might just _know_ things. I mean, I remember all this demon slaying stuff. It's kind of like I really did grow up here and learned all the things my father… the father in this world… game… taught me. It's like I have two sets of memories. So I thought maybe you _remembered_ that way too."

Miroku nodded. "I do remember some things from the memories the game, or the jewel, gave me. But keep in mind that I was not under the influence of the game as long as you were. I don't possess quite as many memories that game gave me as you have."

Taking the opportunity to rest, Sango sat on the ground with her back against an old log. She pulled the quiet firecat onto her lap and began stroking her fur. It was soft. Very soft. Very very real. Although her brain told her that the cat was just pretend, a game sprite, her heart told her that she had loved this little demon since she was a child. She was her cherished friend and trusted ally. It was going to be unbearably painful to part with her. Would she disappear once Naraku was finished with them? Would she die? Was it even possible for her to die? Or would it just be like she never existed?

"After this is over," Miroku asked her softly as he sat beside her, close but not quite touching, "What do you want to do?"

He reached over and captured the tear she didn't even know was on her cheek. Quickly and vigorously she wiped her eyes.

"Take a nice long bubble bath."

"Keh! Is that all you girls think about?" groused Inuyasha as he threw himself down on the ground in front of them.

Sango smiled. "And chocolate. I want a huge chocolate shake."

"I want a chocolate shake too!" piped up Shippo as he landed on Inuyasha's head. "And a bacon double cheeseburger deluxe with jumbo fries!"

The demon slayer laughed. "That sounds good."

Once again the group began talking of the things they would do when they got out of the game. When… not IF. It helped bolster their spirits. Kept them positive. It kept them fom focusing too hard on the 'what if we don't' questions.

"First thing when we're out of here, we'll go out for burgers and shakes," promised Miroku. "Then I'm going to sleep for a week."

"I bet I have about a million email messages to check," sighed Shippo. "And a pile of laundry. I bet it's growing all sorts of interesting molds by now."

"Nice image, Shippo," laughed Kouga as he finally joined them. "I think I'm going to find a beautiful woman and take her to some exotic island. We'll drink pina coladas and … well… since the kid is here I'll just let the rest of you use your imagination on what we would do on the beach."

"Like we care what you … GET YOUR HANDS OFF HER, WOLF!" Inuyasha jumped up and pried Kouga's hands off of Kikyo's.

There was a short scuffle. In the end, Inuyasha ended up separating Kikyo from Kouga. The priestess of bones and clay looked at the dog demon as if seeing him for the first time. She looked… interested. It was the first sign of any emotions anyone had seen on her since she had tried to pose as their friend to kill them.

"I thought he liked Kagome…" asked Shippo quietly to the monk.

Sango glared. "I thought so too."

"Two beautiful women…hmmm…"

The demon slayer whacked him over the head. Hard. "Don't smile like that! Kagome is going to be heartbroken that he's two-timing her."

Miroku frowned. "You're right, of course. Poor Kagome."

"I AIN'T TWO-TIMING NO ONE!"

"They always deny it," sighs the monk. Shippo and Sango nod.

Inuyasha growled at his companions and sought refuge up in the branches of a tree. He knew that they were just trying to get a rise out of him so he would not be so worried about if this plan was going to work or not. At least he hoped that was why they were doing it. Surely they didn't think he was really going to cheat on Kagome with someone who not only tried to kill them, but was dead.

Looking down he noticed that Kikyo was watching him thoughtfully. It made him nervous. Flashes of memories that the game gave him ran through his mind. He closed his eyes, trying to remember them. She tried to kill him. She pinned him to a tree with an enchanted arrow. But there was something else…

His eyes popped open. Nooooooo… No way… Fearfully he looked down and saw the miko smile at him coldly. According to the game, the woman below him had loved him, and he had loved her. But he didn't feel it. It was something that the game or jewel or whatever had programmed into his head. He hadn't been alone for very long before Kagome had found him and freed him, so all he had was pictures in his head, faint memories of what was supposed to have happened to him. But it didn't feel real to him. Not really. He felt something for the miko down below, the game made sure of that, but it wasn't love.

"Come down from the tree, Inuyasha," ordered Kaede. "It is time to begin. We have no time to waste."

Everyone stood up and waited for directions. Kaede took Shippo's right hand and put it in Sango's left hand. She then took Sango's right hand and placed it into Miroku's. Kouga was next.

"I feel like we're playing ring around the rosie," said Shippo.

"I feel like we're about to have a séance," whispered Sango. Kirara hopped up onto her shoulder and meowed.

"Do I HAVE to hold Miroku's hand?" complained Kouga.

"I don't have cooties."

Kaede took a deep breath. Inuyasha reached for Shippo's hand to complete the circle, but the elder priestess grabbed his wrist.

"No. I need you to hold Kikyo's hands."

"WHAT?" Horrified, Inuyasha shrank back from the circle.

With surprising strength, Kaede took Inuyasha by the arm and forced him into the middle of their very small circle. Kikyo stood in front of him and took his hands in hers. He almost panicked when Kaede took Kouga's hand and clasped it to Shippo's, closing the circle. Unfortunately this left very little room on the inside of the circle.

"Relax, Inuyasha," Kaede instructed. "The only one who can get you back to your world is Kagome."

"But…"

"I know that she isn't here, Shippo. But this world was created for her. A part of the jewel is inside of her. This world is connected to her, and only she can help you to escape. I need you to clear your minds. Close your eyes. Think about Kagome. Think about your world. Think about your bodies in your world."

Kaede murmured some prayers as the group focused their thoughts.

"Kikyo will help to connect you to Kagome, Inuyasha. Their souls are two parts of a whole. Talk to Kagome through her. Call to her."

"Kagome."

"Kagome… please hear me."

"Kagome…"

Inuyasha clasped Kikyo's hands tightly as he pictured Kagome's face. He pictured her eyes and her happy smile. He prayed that she heard him somehow.

"Kagome…"

"…Inuyasha?"

The dog demon barked out a laugh and couldn't help the smile spreading across his face. Impossibly… it had worked. He heard her. He could actually hear Kagome's voice. It was faint, and it was tired, but it was hers.

"Yes! Kagome! It's Inuyasha! Are you okay? Where are you? Kagome!"

"Focus, Inuyasha," warned Kaede.

He dared not open his eyes to glare at the miko. He couldn't risk losing his connection to Kagome.

"Kaede says you are the only one who can get us out of here. She says this world is connected to you. Something about the piece of the jewel that's in you. You can get us out of here."

"What? How? I… I don't know how, Inuyasha… I don't know what to do…" She was near tears. The pain in her voice nearly broke his heart.

"Shhhh… it's okay. We'll figure this out. We can do this, I know we can. You're strong. You have the power to do this, Kaede said so." He then directed his voice to the older miko. "Just what is she supposed to do, old hag? Click her heels three times and wish us home?"

"Tell her to picture a doorway between this world and yours. It needs to be in the same place where you left from so you will be able to find your bodies. She must believe that the door will open."

Inuyasha relayed the message. At first he could tell that the girl was skeptical, almost as skeptical as he was. But after some coaxing the bordered on pleading, she decided to do it. She was scared, they all were. If this didn't work, then she just condemned them all to die… but hey, no pressure.

"Can you picture the door?" he asked, unable to stand the few moments of silence as she concentrated.

"Yes."

"Can you picture the room?"

"Yes."

"Can you open the door?"

"Oh for goodness sakes, Inuyasha! Gimme two seconds here to try and figure this out! Creating doors between dimensions isn't exactly something I do every day."

"Well, hurry! We're all hungry over here."

"So am I!"

Inuyasha frowned and stayed silent. Her voice was strained. She sounded very tired. Too tired… wasn't she sleeping? Concentrating on her harder, he tried to see her in his mind. She was hungry. And hurt. His blood began to boil and his hands tightened, causing Kikyo to make a slight squeaking sound.

"Inuyasha?"

"Yes?"

"Nothing… you just got quiet…"

"Take your time, Kagome. We'll get through this. You can do it. We have faith in you." Warmth filled his chest as he could feel her smile.

Then he felt it.

He felt the power.

The air around them began to shimmer. Inuyasha opened his eyes when he heard Sango gasp. There, before them, was a white door with roses stenciled in up along the hinged side. Hanging on the knob was a sign that said 'no monsters allowed, and that means YOU Souta!'

The air crackled with energy. Underneath the door there was a bright pink light.

"Will the door go away if we break the circle?" asked Miroku.

"No, monk. But you must hurry. Go, now, while you can. Take my sister, she can help you to defeat Naraku?"

"Are you coming?" asked Inuyasha as he reached for the doorknob.

The older woman smiled. "Nay, Inuyasha. 'Tis an impossible journey. I am little more than a memory. I have no body nor soul left to keep me alive outside of the jewel. Kikyo is joined to Kagome through their souls, she can make the journey. Hurry."

Inuyasha turned the knob and opened the door. The light was blinding! The dog demon grabbed Shippo and tossed him through.

"Heeyyyyyyy!" the kit screamed as he disappeared.

"Looks like it works."

Sango glared at Miroku. She tried to shake her hand loose to shove him through, but he didn't let go. His eyes were serious as he turned towards her.

"Let's go together, Sango. Just in case…"

She didn't ask just in case of what. There were too many things it could me. She gave him a smile and they went through the door together. Kouga quickly followed, muttering something about Kagome and exotic islands. Inuyasha made a mental note to beat the wolf senseless when he crossed over.

"Okay… it's our turn."

Taking a deep breath, Inuyasha stepped towards the light. He was nervous and excited. What was waiting for them on the other side? Would they make it through? Would he miss the game? Fighting was fun. He enjoyed slicing up enemies with his sword. Would he miss his new body? No more being a dog demon, just a regular man. No more super strength or super hearing or super sense of smell. Just regular ol' regular.

He smiled to himself. _Kagome._ And that thought alone made it worth the loss of all else.

Kikyo kept his hand in hers. "I will not give up my soul," she told the shocked dog demon as they were swallowed by the light. "It is mine… and so are you."


	25. Hunger

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twenty Five: Hunger

Hunger.

Sharp gnawing pain in the belly screaming for something to alleviate it.

Visions of cheeseburgers and tacos and grilled cheese sandwiches filled her head, torturing her. But the temptation only made the unbearable pain in her stomach worse. Her whole body ached. It felt as if she had been beaten within an inch of her life. Her skin was on fire. When she tried to open her eyes, her head exploded in white hot blinding pain.

It was nearly impossible to lift her arms, they felt leaden. Mustering all of her strength she felt along her arm for the source of a particularly sharp pain. Squinting so that the light wouldn't hurt so much, Sango saw the needle sticking in her arm. With a muffled cry she pulled the needle from her body. She was too tired to do anything beyond watching the bead of blood on her arm begin to form.

There were more needles to be extracted. And the tubes! She cringed, not wanting to think about them. But she had no strength left. Her body was weak from hunger and lack of use. _I wonder how long we were in the game._

Jewel. _Whatever_.

Closing her eyes she felt defeated. There was no elation for making it back in the real world as she thought there would be. There was only overpowering fatigue. A desire to sleep herself into oblivion to get away from the pain she was feeling. It would have been better to die in the other world, at least there she felt alive. Strong. This body… it was so weak. So tired.

So very tired.

"Mew?"

Sango blinked. It was impossible. _I must be hearing things._ Struggling with all her might, she managed to turn onto her side. She looked warily down at the floor beside her bed, unsure if she wanted to see what she thought she would see and hoping beyond hope that she would.

"Kirara?"

"Mew." The firecat looked up at the young woman with wide confused eyes. She cocked her head to one side, studying the girl lying nearly immobile on the bed before turning her head in every direction to take in her new strange surrounding. Not to mention attempting to taste all the smells.

"Impossible." Sango laughed suddenly. "Kirara!"

In a single bound the firecat landed lightly on the bed. Arms that were made of lead only moments earlier wrapped easily around the demon in a gentle hug.

Amazingly enough, Sango found herself sitting up. A loud groan caught her attention. Looking off to the side she noticed Shippo was slowly coming around. For a moment she didn't recognize him. She was so used to seeing him as a childlike fox kit that the young man in front of her was virtually a stranger.

"Hungry….", the red haired boy moaned.

"Me too," said Sango as she tried to move her legs. Once she felt she could tolerate the pain, she turned her body to look around for the rest of her friends. Immediately she saw Miroku. _ He's here… he's alive. And… he is… so… blasted far away…_

She sighed resignedly. _Time to get moving._

The first thing to do was to get rid of the rest of the needles and tubes and work on blocking them from her memory forever. I'm going to need some serious therapy after all this. Removing the foreign objects invading her body was painful. Excruciating. Unfortunately it was also necessary, so she sucked it up and kept removing the items. She called out for Shippo to do the same.

It worried her that Miroku hadn't woken up yet. Nor had she heard a peep from Kouga or Inuyasha. She took a deep breath. Miroku first, then she would find the others.

With a grunt she slid her body off of the bed, testing her weight on her legs. Pain shot up her legs, which had been immobile for so long. It felt as if sharp needles where shooting through her muscles and bone. Every movement just made it worse. Tears slid down her face without her permission.

"Miroku," she called, her voice trembling. "Time to wake up."

Struggling for balance, Sango reached out to the medical cart next to her bed. Startled, she realized that she couldn't actually feel her feet. She wanted to look down to make sure that they were there, but suddenly images from dozens of horror flicks ran through her mind. No one had ever accused Sango of being a coward, but looking down to see if her feet were still indeed there was too terrifying a prospect to consider. Instead she grasped the cart, thanked every god and goddess that she could think of that it was on wheels, and gingerly leaned into it.

Ever so slowly she began inching her way to her sleeping companion, hobbling awkwardly. It was too hard to tell if he was breathing or not, and so far he hadn't moved a muscle. _What if they didn't all make it back… alive…? _Gulping loudly she pushed that thought away. _No sense borrowing trouble, _she reminded herself. In the back of her mind she heard Shippo's anguished cries as he was obviously freeing himself.

"Miroku… please wake up…"

She was getting closer. Her entire body was wracked with pain, but she kept moving. She had to get to him. She had to see if he was okay. Kirara mewed softly, but Sango didn't dare look down and risk stumbling. She had to get to Miroku.

Inch by inch. Foot by foot. Sango finally managed to reach her friend's side. Shaking with fatigue, she sat gingerly beside him. Her fingers were brushing the hair away from his eyes before she knew what they were doing. She smiled, remembering how Miroku used to say how his hand moved of its own violation and he had no control over it.

_No_, she frowned suddenly, _no talking about him in the past tense. He's alive. I can see him breathing. He WILL make it. If only he would wake up…_

"Get up, Miroku. I'm hungry… and you promised me a chocolate shake and a bacon double cheeseburger." Gently she shook him.

Looking at where her hand connected to his arm she realized that he was still full of needles and hooked up to the machine through what looked like a million wires. Sango rubbed her chest where she had ripped the tape and wires off too quickly. She would bet good money thast she lost quite a bit of flesh in her haste. As she began to carefully remove the needles and wires she continued to demand that Miroku wake up. She tried gentle pleas and not so gentle commands. She even threatened the removal of all of his favorite body parts.

"Please, Miroku," she begged as she closed her eyes and rested her forehead against his. "Please wake up. I need you."

"I need you too."

It was just a whisper of a voice, but it was his. When Sango opened her eyes she was staring into his. She wanted to cry. She wanted shake him until his teeth rattled. She wanted to yell at him for scaring her. She wanted to curse at him to blazes for the pain he put her through.

She kissed him instead.

Then she cried. Then shook him and yelled.

Once Sango had composed herself, she pushed Miroku away from her, hiding her sniffles with a laugh. As she discretely wiped her eyes she looked around the room.

Kirara was wandering about the room, sniffing different objects, looking back occasionally as if to confirm that Sango was still there. Shippo was crying loudly as he pulled the last tube from his body. The sight gave him the dry heaves. Kouga was finally beginning to come around, moaning and groaning and spewing a string of curse words that might have shamed Inuyasha. And Inuyasha… Sango looked around carefully. Where was he? His bed was empty.

"Hey, get Sango to wake ME up!"

"Get your own woman, Kouga!" yelled Miroku, his hand on Sango's knee possessively.

Sango ignored the bickering men as she scanned the room for Inuyasha, the only one in the group who was missing. It was strange that he wasn't there. Every since they went into the game he had been their unofficial leader. Maybe he hadn't come through the portal yet. _Where is he?_

"He has gone in search of Kagome," Miroku said with absolute certainty, noticing the once demon slayer search the room with her eyes.

"Impossible. It took forever just for me to be able to open my eyes. I almost didn't make it the few yards to your bed. There is NO WAY Inuyasha could have gotten out of here so fast or without us hearing him. What if he didn't make it back with us? What if we left him behind?"

Miroku rubbed his face tiredly. "He was here. I heard him."

"You heard him?" She stiffened. "You were awake all this time?" If she hadn't needed her strength to stay upright she would have decked him. Instead, she watched in fascination as Miroku turned a lovely shade of pink.

"No…"

"No?" Well now she was just plain curious since he wouldn't meet her eyes.

He mumbled incoherently and turned his head, focusing on the bruises on his arm where the needles had been inserted. Strong fingers grabbed his chin and forced his head back towards the woman he was trying to hide from at the moment. He sighed.

"I fainted."

Naturally, Sango's first instinct was to laugh. _He fainted._ But she sobered quickly, even before her lips could curve into a smile. The pain he must have been in to have caused him to faint must have been great. Had he moved too soon? Had he tried to do too much before his body was ready? No, she wouldn't laugh at Miroku fainting. _At least not today._ Maybe one day when the pain was a bit less.

"We have to go find Inuyasha," Sango told the group.

Kouga glared at her and tried to growl, though without the vocal cords he had as a wolf demon it didn't have quite the same effect. "Forget him! We need to find Kagome!"

Shippo sighed, sliding his legs off the side of the bed. "And just where do you suppose Inuyasha went, you idiot?"

An empty fluid bag was tossed at Shippo's head. Well, in that direction at any rate. Unused muscles didn't have quite the same power as they had before. Shippo snickered as the bag landed several feet short.

"So," Sango said firmly, "We have a plan. We'll get out of here and track Inuyasha."

Miroku groaned with the effort of just moving his head. "Do you have any idea how far away that door is?"

"I'm awfully weak," Shippo said, embarrassed to admit it. "Do you think we should find some food or get some aspirins or something before we go? I know that I won't be of much use in a fight if I can barely sit up."

_Do we scrounge for food? If we don't we'll be too weak to fight. If we do we may be too late to be of any help._ She worried her lip between her teeth as she weighed the pros and cons. This wasn't like the game. There were no bottles of potions to pick up at the end or any inns to rest at. No phoenix feathers to bring them back to life should the worst happen. _How did I get stuck being the decision maker anyhow?_

"We go after Inuyasha. We can't let him fight alone." She looked at each of her companions, almost daring them to contradict her. "But along the way we need to keep an eye out for anything we can eat or use." Slowly she stood to her feet, heading towards the locker that held her clothes. "And if anyone happens to see a phoenix feather, for the love of Heaven pick it up!"

"Hey! Did you know these gowns don't have backs?" asked Shippo merrily.

Sango let out a squeak before reaching behind to keep the cloth closed. Miroku and Kouga reprimanded Shippo for bringing that little tidbit to her attention. It involved more objects being tossed at his head. Not all were blunt objects either. Luckily, however, their aim was off and the power behind the throws were… well… without too much power.

It wasn't as fast going as she would have liked, but eventually the group was finally dressed and in the hall. They were out of breath and flushed from the effort, but they were still in the hall.

"Now what?" Kouga asked while trying to catch his breath.

Sango smirked as she looked down the hall, "We follow Inuyasha."

Following Inuyasha was easy. All they had to do was follow the path of destruction. _How is it possible that he had the strength to do this when the rest of us could barely stand? It doesn't make sense._

Each door that they came to they tried to open. Most of them were locked. Luckily, however, a few of them were open. The open ones they looted mercilessly. Sango had a flashback of looting peoples' homes and the inns while she was in the game. She laughed at the irony.

In some of the desks they managed to find some snack bars. One of the employees must have a serious sweet tooth, because they found the mother load of chocolate in the bottom drawer of a desk in the corner in the back. They managed to locate the staff lounge along the way, but there was very little in the refrigerator, and certainly nothing edible. There were a few crackers in a cabinet and Kouga managed to choke down some instant coffee crystals by the spoonful. Sango skipped the coffee and savored the last bits of chocolate, not too proud to lick the wrapper and suck the chocolate from her fingers (which got lots of undivided attention).

"Do you think we should save some chocolate for Kagome?" asked Shippo as he made sure he hadn't missed a crumb from the small bag of chips he had found.

Sango looked at the empty wrappers on the counter. There wasn't a single morsel of chocolate left_. I can't believe I didn't even think of saving some for her. _ She lowered her eyes in shame. The hunger had driven all thoughts out of her head save for sating the hunger. _I'm a horrible friend… I can't believe I didn't think to save some for her. After all, at every store she asked for some… I'm horrible…_

"We'll buy Kagome all the chocolate she could possibly want once we find her and get out of here," Miroku said as he scooped the wrappers into the trash. "It's a very kind thought, Shippo, but we need our strength if we are going to save her."

Once the wrappers were out of sight Miroku took Sango's hand and gave it a squeeze. With no more food in sight, that was edible anyhow, Kouga and Shippo left the lounge.

"There is nothing to feel guilty about," Miroku told her softly once the door had closed behind the two ex-demons, leaving them alone in the lounge. "We need it more than she does right now. She would tell you the same thing, and you know it."

"I should have at least thought of her."

Grasping her shoulders, Miroku turned Sango to face him. "You were desperate for food, Sango. We all were. You saw us fighting over scraps of food like wild dogs. But we have to do what we have to do to survive. I was serious when I said we will need our strength to save her. What good is a piece of chocolate if we are not strong enough to keep her from death?"

She sighed. "I know… but she should have at LEAST entered my mind. What kind of friend am I?"

Miroku kissed her gently before resting pulling her close, encouraging her head to lie on his shoulder. "Let's go home Sango."

"What?"

"Let's just go. You and me. Right now. Inuyasha and Kouga can save Kagome. Let's just go get that cheeseburger and shake like I promised you."

Smack!

A bright red imprint of a hand glowed on Miroku's cheek.

"How DARE you say that! How DARE you even SUGGEST we abandon Kagome?"

"You barely know her," argued Miroku reasonably. "She's practically a stranger. Just some random girl you met on the Internet playing games. If we don't go now you'll be risking your life… all for a virtual stranger. We can leave now and save ourselves."

"Kagome is my FRIEND! I would never NEVER just leave her!" Sango snarled. She was boiling with fury.

Miroku grinned warmly. "And that, my dear Sango, is just the kind of friend you are."

"Huh?"

"You would risk your very life for your friends. You would go to save a girl you only met online."

Her fists unclenched and her blood pressure lowered. She tried to muster up some anger for being tricked, but couldn't manage it.

"Saving her life will mean more to her than a bar of chocolate."

_Depends on the chocolate_, thought Sango, smiling to herself at the sentiment that Kagome would have shared with her.

"Sometimes you say smart things," she admitted reluctantly. "But don't let it go to your head."

When they exited the lounge they found Shippo on the ground throwing up. Evidently gorging oneself on junk food after your body was starved does not agree with the intestinal system. Sango rubbed his back as she motioned for the other two to keep moving.

"I don't want to be useless," he whispered after spitting the remaining bile to the floor.

"You aren't useless. We need you." She smoothed his hair. "Kagome needs you."

He nodded and stood up to follow Sango, who was beginning to feel a little sorry for the cleaning staff as they left one mess to trail after another.

"He must have found a knife," said Miroku as he looked at the slashed wallpaper. "Or maybe a box cutter." He turned to look at Sango. "Do you think we should find some weapons for ourselves as well?"

There were not many choices of weaponry in an office building, but along their way to their destination, whatever it may be, they managed to find a thing or two. Miroku found a metal broom and unscrewed the handle, and voila! A makeshift staff. Shippo raided the office supplies for thumbtacks and scissors, grabbing some duct tape just in case. Sango wrapped the end of a long metal ruler with masking tape and tucked the two screwdrivers she found into her waistband. Kouga decided he would just use his fists.

Finally they came to a room that was torn up much worse than all the others. On the far end was an elevator door. There were deep scratches in the door, and even some of the metal had been bent.

"This is it," breathed Sango.

For a moment they looked at each other. Their long walk had taken a toll on their bodies, and they were exhausted.

"I want extra large fries at dinner tonight," said Shippo, "And a double shake."

Sango smiled as she pushed the button. "Miroku's treat, order all you want."

"Hey!"

More determined than ever to fight, Sango leaned against the wall for support while she gathered her strength and waited for the elevator door to open. She would see that Naraku paid for what he did to them. There wasn't the luxury of time to heal. No matter how badly her body screamed, she had to keep moving. One glance behind her and she saw that her friends were just as determined as she was.

The ride down was slow. Each of the four friends were breathing hard, bodies shaking with effort to stay upright.

There was no ding to announce the arrival of their floor. Instead, the doors silently opened. Even more destruction greeted them. They moved forward to where they saw the bodies.

Sango gasped when she saw the chains on the wall. Her eyes followed them down to the bruised and battered bodies at the end of them. One was an older woman, she was sitting with her back against the wall, her eyes open and watching. But the other girl… she was barely recognizable as she lay unconscious in the filth around her.

A growl drew her attention away from Kagome.

"Impossible…"

Hunger.

Sharp gnawing pain in the belly screaming for something to alleviate it.

Visions of what must have happened to Kagome for her to be in this state filled his head, torturing him. As surely as he felt the need to draw air into his lungs, he felt the need to see pain returned to the man responsible for this tenfold. He could feel the roaring beast inside of him demanding to be set free. Only his death would satisfy this hunger.

Inuyasha flexed his claws.


	26. Demon Unleashed

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twenty-Six: Demon Unleashed

"No!" screamed Sango.

"I'm sorry," Miroku said as he put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her towards him to attempt to shelter her from the sight of their friend laying broken on the dirty floor.

"Kagome is… dead."

"Shut up, Koga!" the distraught woman she swung her fist wildly in his direction. "I won't believe it! I WON'T!"

Inuyasha was crouched near Kagome's body. His claws digging into the flooring as he fought the demon inside of him. A hazy red film seemed to be coating his vision. He couldn't put together any coherent thoughts. He wanted to mourn. He wanted to destroy. He wanted, more than anything, to rip apart the man who did this to his mate. But he couldn't bear to leave her side. It hurt too much to have her beyond his reach. Growling and snarling he kept all others away from her. Away from them.

"What an unexpected pleasure," smiled Naraku as he made a welcoming gesture. "I'm afraid I was not prepared for guests."

Shippo was the one who noticed that change in Inuyasha first. His eyes burned blood red and his fangs and claws grew longer and sharper. Stripes of purple slashed across his face, now contorted in rage. Luckily that rage was only directed towards one person, though the young man knew in his heart that if anyone should even attempt to approach Kagome they would likely be cut down.

With a wave of his arm, Naraku sent a legion of poisonous insects towards the group. Inuyasha destroyed them with his claws and the others used their makeshift weapons. As the enraged dog demon fought the insects, Naraku made his move towards the two women chained to the wall. But before he could get close to Kagome, Inuyasha was standing in front of him, slashing wildly.

When Naraku fell back Inuyasha turned towards Sango. "Get her to safety," he growled.

Sango looked at him sadly. "But Inuyasha… she's…"

"GET HER TO SAFETY!" He turned his attention back to Naraku. With a roar he launched himself at the demon in the skin of a man.

Choking back tears, Sango moved quickly towards Kagome. The closer she got, the more upset she became. One of the bones in her left arm had broken and pierced through her skin. It was too much. Her stomach threatened to expel all of its contents at the sight in front of her. She couldn't bear to see her friend like this. She couldn't bring herself to touch her body.

"She is not yet dead."

Sango's gaze snapped to the other woman in chains. She was struck by how much the woman resembled Kagome. Immediately she felt protective of her, likely because of the similarity between her and her friend. Finally the woman's words registered in her brain and Sango began searching for signs of life. She leaned down and put her cheek near Kagome's mouth.

"I can't feel her breathing."

"She lives," the woman insisted.

Sango took hold of Kagome's wrist. She placed two fingers over her friend's pulse and closed her eyes, trying to tune out the sounds of battle behind her. Yes! There it was. It was faint, but it was definitely a pulse.

"Young Kagome used all of her energy to open the doorway to bring you and your friends home. Though she is not yet dead, she is not far off." The woman looked towards the battle that was taking place. Naraku was deftly avoiding Inuyasha's fists and claws. "Besides, HE does not yet want her dead. He needs her alive a little while longer. She will of no use to him dead."

_Naraku needs Kagome's soul_. The thought seriously creeped Sango out.

"We'll find a way to get you out of these chains and get you both out of here. Where is the key?"

The woman shook her head sadly and gave the chains a slight shake. "There is no key, child. These shackles and chains are made of magic."

Sango slammed her fists against the floor. "How am I supposed to save you?"

"The death of Naraku will dissolve the evil magic he used to create these chains." The woman turned her gaze to a dark corner of the room. "Though the miko may be able to help us."

"Miko? But Kagome isn't even conscious. She can't help us."

The woman smiled gently and turned her head to the left. "The other miko."

Sango followed the woman's gaze across the room. There, standing in the shadows, was Kikyo. But the other priestess was not making a move towards them, merely kept her eyes on Kagome.

"Kikyo! Help us!" No matter how loud, or what she promised and threatened, the miko did not respond to any of Sango's pleas.

Again the young woman used her fists against the floor to vent some of her frustrations. There was nothing she could do to help Kagome escape. She could only wait while the others fought. Waiting was torture. _I can't just SIT here! _Even Shippo was out there helping. It wasn't fair. Sango knew she was a better fighter than most of the boys. Once upon a time she might have considered herself a better fighter than Inuyasha too… of course, not when he was in demon form…

"I should be helping fight. I feel useless."

The last thing Sango expected was to hear the woman laugh cheerfully. "Useless? Tell me, child, does that young man care for this young girl?"

The woman had motioned towards Inuyasha. Sango didn't have to pause for thought about her answer. "Yes."

"How much?"

"More than anything else on the planet."

"More than his own life?"

Sango thought about it for a moment, then nodded. Yeah, he probably did care for her more than his own life. His complete and utter devotion to her was astounding. Now that she thought about it, even before the quest, when they were just online friends playing games, Inuyasha was always watching out for Kagome. Every attack against her was a personal attack against him. At first they chalked it up to him wanting to win the game at all costs and felt he had to protect the weaker member. But now… now she knew that he just wanted to protect Kagome. The real world, the virtual world, the jewel world, in every world it seemed that he would put his life on the line for hers.

The woman smiled kindly. "And he has entrusted his most precious treasure for you to guard. I do not think that HE would find you useless. It is my belief that he would choose the strongest to protect her."

A smile found its way to Sango's lips. Well… when you thought about it THAT way… She brushed the hair away from Kagome's eyes. "Just who are you?"

"I am Midoriko. And it is time for you to earn that trust that Inuyasha has in you."

Sango looked up to see Kanna and Kagura in the doorway.

"I thought Kagura decided to stay in the other world."

Midoriko whispered, "Look into her eyes."

The other woman's eyes were red, like the demon counterpart in the other world. Blank. Souless. She even wore the same kimono that she wore as the wind demon.

"That is not the woman you once knew. It is merely a body. A husk. A puppet for Naraku to use. And she is strong, child. They both are. Do not make the mistake of thinking of them as human. While their souls are in the other world, Naraku has found a way to fill these bodies with the souls of demons."

Sango clenched her fists. "Does that mean I can't kill them?"

"The bodies may die, but the demon souls will not. However, if the bodies die, the souls of Kanna and Kagura will forever be trapped within the jewel."

The young woman cursed impressively. "So protect Kagome, but don't kill Kanna and Kagura. Great. Just great. Got any ideas on how to go about this?"

Midoriko shrugged delicately. "Do not get killed."

"Thanks."

"And do not let Kagome get killed."

"Right… Thanks for the help."

With a roar, Kirara transformed from a cute little kitten to a giant firecat demon. Sango felt a little bit better, though she wished she had her weapons from the game. They would have come in handy. Luckily she had just enough time to grab a table and overturn it to use it as a shield before the first wind attack came. The blades of wind cut through the cheap pressed wood of the table. It would survive maybe one or two more attacks. _Maybe_.

"There might be something in these boxes that might help."

"Maybe, Shippo. But I don't exactly have time to go browsing now do… hey… I thought you were fighting Naraku with Inuyasha and Miroku."

"And Kouga," Shippo said. He added his weight, slight though it was, to the table to keep it blocking the vicious wind. "But Inuyasha started going into this killing rampage, so Miroku told me to head back here and help you with Kagome." He shrugged. "Plus I ran out of supplies."

Sango smiled, glad to have a little backup. "Okay kiddo, you go sneak out of here and search those boxes. Don't let them see you."

"But I'm supposed to help you protect Kagome," he whined.

"Finding us some weapons will do a better job of protecting Kagome than anything else. I promise you." She turned her attention back to the wind demon and gasped. "NO! Don't kill them Kirara!"

The firecat demon was dismayed, but took her teeth out of Kanna, or rather the demon in Kanna's body. The pale woman lay unconscious on the floor. Being shook like a ragdoll must have knocked her out. Sango tried to feel sorry for her, but couldn't seem to manage to muster up any sympathy.

One more blast of wind shredded the table, cutting Sango's arms and face. Quickly she covered Kagome's body with her own. When she heard Kagura chant again Sango tensed, determined to protect Kagome. The wind cut through the air, tearing up everything in its path. It should have cut into Sango too. Oddly enough, she didn't get touched by it. When she looked up she was gazing into familiar violet eyes.

"Miroku!" She gasped. "What are you doing here?"

His smile was grim as he winced from the pain in his shoulder and back. For a moment he wondered how it was possible that wind could cut like knives. "Inuyasha seems to be in some sort of killing rage. Quite frankly, it is safer being cut up by the wind demon than the dog demon." This time his smile was warmer. "If I guard Kagome, can you take that witch out?"

Sango smiled, then nodded. Quickly she looked around the room. What were her options? She dug into her pockets in hopes of finding something else that may help too. Her smile nearly split her face when her fingers touched the cool glass in her pocket. Thank heavens for girly habits that she couldn't break. Quickly she dashed across the room towards her target.

Kagura seemed divided on who she should attack. She was to destroy all who would aid the mikos. Right now that meant the dark haired young man.

Using the end of the screwdriver, Sango smashed the top of her roll on perfume bottle. With a swing of her arm she flung the alcohol based contents at the wind demon's red eyes. It had the desired effect. Kagura was screaming in agony, clutching at her eyes. With a solid right punch, Sango knocked Kagura out.

"Sango!"

The girl turned towards Shippo's voice two seconds before a coiled rope hit her in the chest.

"I found a rope!"

"I noticed," she muttered.

Inuyasha spared Sango a glance as he dropped to his feet after finally managing to land a blow on Naraku. The female and they red headed kid were busy tying up the two women. Good. However, he wasn't so crazy about the male guarding his mate. He snarled a warning at the male. _Hang on_, he commanded her, _just a little longer._

A chill ran through Miroku even as his back felt as if it were on fire. The look Inuyasha just gave him was crystal clear. Touch Kagome and die. Let any harm come to Kagome and die. Miroku had a feeling that if the girl had even a chipped nail that she didn't have when she was left in his care that he would be a dead man. He couldn't wait until Sango finished tying up the others so that she could relieve him of his duty. His nerves just weren't up to dealing with an enraged overly jealous demon. Besides, Inuyasha seemed to be dividing up his time keeping an eye on Kagome and trying to fight Naraku.

"Sango! Hurry up!" Miroku yelled.

When she looked back in consternation he looked pointedly towards the dog demon. Quickly she finished the last knot and ran back towards Kagome.

"Stay and guard these two," Sango told Shippo.

On her way back she ran into Kouga. Well, more specifically, Kouga was hurled into her, knocking them both to the ground.

"I'm enrolling that mutt into some anger management classes," Kouga muttered angrily. "Doesn't he know we're on the same side?"

"Did you happen to mention Kagome's name?" Sango asked as she attempted to untangle herself. She looked up to find Miroku glaring at them. _Who knew that Miroku could be the jealous type? _Quickly she looked away before he could see her smirk.

"So what if I did? We are here to rescue her aren't we?" He shrugged. "Man, you sure are bony. Watch those elbows!"

"Then get OFF me, you oaf!" She huffed, "And I'm NOT bony!"

He smiled and let himself go boneless on her. "Oh, I don't know. You're pretty comfortable, Sango."

Out of nowhere a table leg hit Kouga in the head, knocking him off of Sango. Looking over her shoulder, Sango only saw an innocent looking Miroku… and a three legged table. With a final kick to get the rest of Kouga off of her, Sango began making her way back to the others. Kouga rubbed his head, grumbled a bit about how unfairly they all treated him and followed.

When they were a couple of yards away from Kagome, a chair flew out of nowhere and hit Kouga. This time Miroku looked just as surprised as Sango. Together they turned and saw Inuyasha snarling at them. Sango took a step back. That's when she noticed that his eyes were not on her, but on Kouga.

"Um… maybe you should help Shippo guard Kagura and Kanna."

Kouga glared at her. "I'm going to go free Kagome. Get out of my way."

Sango put her hand on his chest, stopping his movements. "Really, I think it would be best to guard those women. They have the souls of demons in them. Just make sure not to kill them."

Kouga growled, or as close as he could in human form. "I am not afraid of Inuyasha. Move. Now."

"No."

"I don't want to fight you, Sango. Just let me help Kagome."

Sango sighed, but did not budge. "The chains are magical. The only way to get them free is to either kill Naraku or get Kikyo to help." Sango smiled. "Maybe you can get Kikyo to help. You DO have a way with women…"

Ah, it was that easy. With a smug smile, Kouga went off to sweet talk Kikyo into helping. Before Sango could hurry back to Miroku and Kagome, she felt a hand grasp her elbow. With a backwards jab with her elbow, a quick side step, and one strong yank, her attacker was flat on his back with her foot at his throat.

"Oops, sorry Shippo." She extended a hand and helped him to his feet.

The teen rubbed this throat gingerly. "See if I bring you presents again."

"Presents?"

Shippo smiled mischievously. "Yeah, for Miroku." He shoved a small box into her hands before dashing off. "Gotta get back to the ladies!"

Curious, Sango opened the box. She grinned at the contents. Ofudas. Magic scrolls like Miroku had used in the game. _Will they work in the real world?_ She smiled again. _Only one way to find out._

"Thanks Shippo!" Quickly she hurried to Miroku's side.

By the time she reached her friends, it was as if a hole opened up and all the demons were released from the pits of Hades.

"Quick! Make a barrier!"

Miroku grimaced. "Sango, that was a game. I can't make a barrier."

She shoved the box in his hands. "Make a barrier NOW, Miroku!" Turning from him, Sango punched a demon who looked suspiciously like one of the ox demons from the game. "Shippo! Kouga! Kikyo! Get over here!"

Immediately Kouga and Shippo ran towards them. Kikyo, however, melted into the shadows and disappeared. Miroku began to chant.

"Get that barrier up, monk!"

Miroku continued to chant. Once Kouga and Shippo were with them he opened his eyes. He could feel the power. He felt Sango slump down next to him and breathe a sigh of relief. He heard Kouga and Shippo gasp in amazement as the barrier shimmered. Closing his eyes again, he continued to chant.

"I knew you could do it," Sango whispered. "Good job finding those scrolls, Shippo. You're a hero."

"How is Miroku able to do that?" asked a disgruntled Kouga. "And how come Inuyasha got to keep being a demon?"

"Miroku learned those skills in the game," answered Midoriko. "Thus, he has the knowledge to continue using that magic. Everything you learned in the game is still within your memories."

"But why is Inuyasha still a demon?" Shippo asked.

"That, my dear child, is a very good question. Perhaps when Kagome wakes up we shall ask her."

That wasn't the answer Sango expected. So far it seemed as if Midoriko had known everything. As she was about to open her mouth to ask the woman if she even had a guess Sango froze. It was too quiet.

Looking around she saw a room filled with blood and dismembered body parts of demons. In the middle of the room stood Inuyasha, pulsing with angry power. He was poised to attack, but there were no enemies left. When he looked in their direction, Sango actually shivered in fear. There was an urge to take off running as he began to stalk over to them.

Miroku did not stop chanting his spell of protection.

Shippo was the first to speak. "Did you kill Naraku?"

"No," growled Inuyasha as he took a swipe at the barrier. "Let down the barrier."

"So, you couldn't defeat Naraku by yourself after all, could you mutt?" scoffed Kouga, who did not seem to have an ounce of self preservation.

"Get rid of the barrier."

Sango's heart began to race as she saw his eyes burn blood red. Suddenly it didn't seem like such a good idea to let the barrier drop. She could see that Miroku was glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, asking her what they should do.

"I need Kagome."

"Drop the barrier, Miroku." Inuyasha did need Kagome, she could hear it in his voice.

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the barrier was dropped. Pushing aside anyone in his path, Inuyasha knelt beside Kagome. When he looked up, his eyes were gold. Everyone seemed to breathe a little easier.

"We have to get her out of here." Inuyasha put his hand under her head and his other arm under her legs.

"We can't move her," argued Kouga. "She has broken bones, probably a concussion! You can't move her, you idiot!"

"I can't let her wake up to THIS!"

Sango sighed, the anguish in his voice nearly moving her to tears. She didn't want Kagome to wake up to the blood and gore either. "We can't move her even if we wanted to, Inuyasha. The chains are magic. The only way to break them is to kill Naraku or get Kikyo's help. Both have disappeared, in case you haven't noticed."

"We can free her without them."

"No Inuyasha… we can't. I want to too, but we can't."

"I WILL."

Inuyasha roared as he grabbed the chains and pulled with all of his might. But the chains did not budge.

"Kagome!" he screamed as he continued to pull. "Wake UP!"

The dog demon was too busy fighting the change to notice the pink glow. It started at her fingertips and spread up her arms, slowly engulfing her body. Sango, Miroku, Kouga, Shippo, and even Midoriko watched in amazement as the glow seemed to spread from Kagome's body to Inuyasha's. It didn't surprise anyone when he was finally able to pull the chains from the wall. As soon as the chains were freed from the stone wall they began to disintegrate.

Inuyasha slumped to the ground. "Keh… told you…"

Then he promptly passed out.

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

Author's Note: Bet you guys thought I was never going to get the next chapter up, huh? Thanks for the reviews, they really help keep me motivated. But don't worry, regardless of how late a chapter may come, I will definitely finish my story.


	27. Sleeping Beauty

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Sleeping Beauty

Blip.

Blip.

"Wake up Sleeping Beauty."

Blip.

Blip.

The voice was quiet and sounded far away. But it was very insistent and refused to be ignored.

"Ah, and Beauty shall awake with love's first kiss…" Ever so softly, a pair of lips brushed a fevered brow.

Blip.

Blip.

Muscles ached, and the pull of sleep was almost overwhelming. It was the too clean smells and annoying blips that forced wakefulness. Something was out of whack. Where was the smell of blood and gore?

"So help me, if you just kissed me, I will kill you Miroku."

There was a good deal of cheering when the words came out, regardless of how hoarse they sounded. Miroku was grinning at the edge of his bed, totally unrepentant.

"Inuyasha is awake!"

"Yeah, yeah, keep it down, brat."

Blip.

Blip.

Inuyasha frowned. "Are you guys playing… Pong?"

"They wouldn't let us hook up our computers to the Net or even plug in a game machine to the TV," explained Sango apologetically. "And since this was the only game Shippo had downloaded to his hard drive…"

"Pong?"

Shippo shrugged, "So I like old school games, sue me."

Finally pulling himself to an upright position, Inuyasha looked more closely around the room. The television was on some station with a steamy soap opera. Likely it was Miroku's choice and not Sango's consider she and Shippo were sitting in the only two chairs in the hospital room huddled in front of the computer. Inuyasha guessed that daytime soaps were as close to porn as the guy could get. Junk food wrappers littered for floor and soda cans were piled everywhere. A pillow and a blanket were piled in the corner where someone had obviously napped. Miroku was reaching over him and snagging a bowl of some unidentifiable semi-solid food product off of the tray beside him. More blasted tubes were stuck in his body! _Didn't I just get rid of all this?_

"Where's Kagome?"

Those two words silenced the room. What was worse… no one would look him in the eye. His heart began to pound erratically. Sango closed the computer and tucked the laptop back in the case with a fox demon painted on it. Miroku swallowed his spoonful of… possibly pudding… and moved to the other side of the room.

"She's in a coma."

"WHAT?" The machines Inuyasha was hooked up to all started bleeping like mad at the drastic rise in his blood pressure.

"Nice way to ease into it, Miroku," Sango grumbled.

Miroku cleared his throat and spoke in his most soothing voice. "If you remember, Kagome was hurt very badly. The doctors were not even sure if she was going to make it through the night. They induced a coma so that her body could heal properly. They can bring her out of it when they feel she is ready."

"She'll be okay."

"We hope so, Inuyasha."

The dark haired boy glared. "It wasn't a question." Then he noticed he had dark hair again insteas of silver. "What happened? I thought I was staying a demon!" He looked down at his hands. The claws were gone. He ran his tongue over his teeth, already knowing that his fangs would be gone too.

"When they put Kagome into the coma, you went back to normal." Miroku leaned against the wall and grinned. "We're lucky Kagome was in such bad shape."

Sango grabbed Shippo and ran from the room, smacking Miroku upside the head as they went, saying they needed some hot chocolate desperately. Before the door closed, Inuyasha heard Shippo whining that he wanted to stay for the show.

"We're lucky what?" His hand curled into fists, barely able to suppress his rage.

Miroku laughed nervously. "Perhaps that came out badly." He scratched his head and took a step towards the door. "After you collapsed, we managed to bring you and Kagome into the main lobby. Midoriko helped with her magic. Somehow when you broke Kagome's chains, hers broke as well. She believes that Kagome is responsible for you being a demon in this world somehow."

"We're lucky what?"

He moved one step closer to the door, a little disconcerted that Inuyasha hadn't seemed to blink once and his eyes seemed to be glowing unnaturally. "When the ambulance picked you up, you had silver hair, claws, ears, the whole demon shebang. Naturally people were interested. VERY interested. You were collapsed because of exhaustion. Heck, we were all admitted for exhaustion and malnutrition. But Kagome was in such bad shape that they had to immediately focus on her. By the time they had time they finally had time to think about you, she was already in the coma and you were back to normal." He held up his hands in a placating manner. "That's all I meant. I didn't intend to sound disrespectful to our friend."

Inuyasha turned his head towards the window. "Get out of here."

"Seriously, it just came out wrong."

"Just… give me some time alone." He sighed. "Please."

"Alright." He opened the door. "We'll be back later."

Inuyasha grunted his dismissal. He waited until the door shut before he turned his head back so he could study the ceiling. He missed Kagome.

A nurse and a doctor came to check on him and tell him how very lucky he was. Lucky. Right. _If I was lucky then Naraku would be dead and Kagome wouldn't have gotten so much as a scrapped knee. If I was lucky I would be at full demon strength and on my way to killing that monster who nearly killed…_ He winced, ignoring the doctor and the nurse as they poked and prodded. _Is she okay? Is she alive?_ He had tried asking the doctor, but all the doctor would say was that Kagome was alive, but that he needed to focus on getting better and try not to worry. His demands to see Kagome were all ignored. When his demand became more… well… just more… they decided it would be in his best interest to have a little rest and was heavily sedated,

"Inuyasha" Her voice was weak and tired. "Inuyasha!"

His head was fuzzy and his body felt like lead. But he came alive when he heard her voice. "Kagome!"

"Inuyasha!"

"I'm here Kagome. Are you okay? Those doctors won't tell me a da…"

"Inuyasha, where are you?"

He looked around, trying to find her. His heart clenched painfully at the desperate sound in her voice. "I'm here. I'm close."

There was a tiny sob. "Please Inuyasha… Where are you?"

Slowly her voice began to fade. He knew that she was scared, and felt alone. He also knew that she couldn't hear a word that he was saying. She needed him. It tore at his heart to hear her sound so frightened. And she was looking for HIM! He tried to focus on fighting against the fog in his head and not the warm fuzzy feeling that she was searching for him.

But he couldn't wake his body. He roared in frustration. Then he felt it.

The demon.

Deep inside of him the golden eyed demon began to roar to life with the same frantic need to get to Kagome. With a burst of energy, Inuyasha was finally able to tear away the heavy drug induced sleep. A low rumble of a growl could have been heard had there been anyone in the room with him.

Angrily, Inuyasha ripped out the needle stuck in his arm. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and lurched upwards. Unfortunately his body was so weak that he fell to his knees. Unable to give up, he pulled himself to his feet. He tried to remember if Miroku had actually mentioned what room Kagome was in. Or even what floor she was on. A slight breeze from behind reminded him that he was in a hospital gown. Before he could decide if he was going to go as is to find Kagome (though that wasn't really how he wanted her to see those parts of him for the first time) or if he was going to be able to walk around with a sheet tied around his waist, the door creaked slowly open.

Inuyasha grabbed the intruder and slammed the body against the wall, determined to bully, beat, or beg the information out of them about Kagome.

"Inuyasha, are you completely insane?"

He grinned tiredly. "Maybe." He turned his back towards the wall. "Tell me where Kagome is, Sango."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't be stupid. You can barely stand up. Did you get permission to get out of bed?"

"Where is she?"

Sango took a bite out her chocolate bar. "You can't go walking around like you own the place, Inuyasha. The doctor has to say it is okay before you can go traipsing about."

"Where. Is. She?"

She sighed. "You should be in bed. How come you are awake anyhow? You were supposed to be out for the rest of the night. What did you do to them anyhow? When we came back they were mad as wet hornets."

"She needs me. Tell me where she is NOW!"

Wadding up the wrapper she threw it to the trashcan. It, along with approximately a dozen or so others, didn't quite make it in. But that was only because it was already overflowing with junk food wrappers.

"Fine."

She turned to open the door when she felt him grab her arm. Looking over her shoulder at him she noticed his faint blush.

"Er… is there a robe or something I could use?"

It took almost fifteen minutes to find Kagome, even though she was only one floor below them. Sango took her duties of keeping Inuyasha's escape seriously. At one point, when a doctor turned a corner, she shoved Inuyasha into the restroom and shut the door, humming softly and bouncing a little as if she was waiting for her turn. When the coast was clear she let a very disgruntled Inuyasha out of the ladies room. When she made him take the emergency stairs instead of the elevator, Inuyasha began to wonder if she was punishing for something.

At long last he was in front of her room in ICU. If he had claws, he would have been tearing down the room and at least one of the inhabitants. Sitting beside HIS Kagome was that stinking Kouga. Oh, and that other woman too. Mid-something-er-other.

"What are you doing here?" he hissed.

"Keeping watch over my woman."

Before he could leap across the room and pound the other male's face into mush, Midoriko had murmured a spell to bind him. He glared at her, ready to add her to his list of people to tear to shreds.

"Let us talk a walk," she said as she stood, taking Kouga's arm.

"I don't want to leave," he snarled.

The woman just smiled and murmured another spell. Instantly Kouga stood to his feet and obediently followed her out of the room. Once they were out of eyesight, the spell on Inuyasha fell away. In a heartbeat he was at Kagome's side. He was grateful when Sango ducked out of the room, saying that she would go keep an eye on the others.

"Kagome…"

He took her hand in his. The one that wasn't attached to the broken arm. It looked so small and fragile. Wincing, he looked at the needle suck in her hand. Finally he let himself look at all of the tubes and wires connected to her. There was a constant bleeping sound that reminded him of waking up to his friends playing Pong. He was horrified at the number of bruises on her skin and lost count of the stitches. He cursed himself for failing her, for not protecting her.

Gently he brushed a kiss on her forehead, sealing the promise that he would protect her with his life. He tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear and looked at her. Battered and bruised, she was still the most beautiful creature he had ever seen.

It was impossible, absolutely impossible, not to touch his lips to hers.

"Inu…yasha…"

He froze. When the noises the machine made changed, Inuyasha pulled back slightly. Her eyes were open slightly, and she was smiling at him. Giving a short laugh, he took a deep breath, ignoring the tears in his eyes.

"Sleeping Beauty awakes."

"You... came…"

He let his forehead rest against hers. "Of course I did. You called for me, didn't you?"

The door flew open before Inuyasha could kiss her again.

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

Blip.

Blip.

"Hey, Miroku?"

"Yes, Shippo?"

Blip.

Blip.

"What do you suppose all that commotion is about?"

Miroku didn't take his eyes off the of the computer screen. "I would be good money that it has something to do with Inuyasha."

Shippo nodded as he concentrated on anticipating where the ball would bounce.

Blip.

Blip.

"Hey, guys."

Miroku finally looked up. "My dear, Sango."

"What's all the yelling about?" Shippo asked.

Sango laughed loudly as she plopped into the seat next to Miroku. "Inuyasha woke Kagome up from her coma. The doctors are trying to extract our beloved dog demon out of the room."

Miroku frowned. "Tell me he isn't a demon again."

"He isn't a demon again."

He sighed. "Is that true?"

With a grin she propped her feet up and pulled out a book of short stories from her purse. Nonchalantly she opened it up randomly and began to read. It was wrong to torture him, she knew it, but she couldn't help it.

"Aw, c'mon, Sango!" Miroku's voice awfully close to a whine. "You can't leave us in suspense like this!"

"Ha! I won!" Shippo jumped up and punched a fist in the air triumphantly. "That makes twelve games in a row! Man, this just isn't your game is it, Miroku?"

"I think there are more important issues here than my skills at Pong."

Smugly Shippo turned off his computer and put it back in his bag. "Skill? You mean lack thereof." He dodged a blow to the head. Quickly he ran to go hide behind the safest place possible… Sango.

The young woman snapped her book shut. "Let's get out of here. We've got things to do, you know."

Frustrated, Miroku jumped to his feet and grabbed her arms, giving her a little shake. "IS HE A DEMON?"

With a sweep of her foot and a twist of her arm, Sango had Miroku lying on the cold floor whimpering in pain. She stepped over him, perhaps unnecessarily, to move across the lobby towards the exit. "Come along, Shippo. We've got a long day ahead of us. Might as well get started."

"What kinds of things do we have to do?" asked Shippo.

"Well," she said as she opened the door, "First thing we should do is go get Kirara. Maybe we'll invite a couple friends to do a little shopping."

"Shopping?" exclaimed Miroku as he hurried to catch up with them.

"Yeah. Maybe at the sports supply store. Then I think we should probably try and find where Inuyasha has taken Kagome."


	28. Prepared for Battle

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Prepared for Battle

They were prepared for battle.

Sango looked at her friends, each looked as grim as she felt. They were hunting, preparing for battle… with Inuyasha. With the demon Inuyasha. But when push comes to shove, will they be able to fight him? Would they have to make that terrible decision of destroying their friend.

"What will your parents say when they get your credit card bill?" asked Miroku.

"They'll probably just be grateful that it was at a sporting good store instead of a computer or game store." Shippo laughed. "They seem to think that spending so many hours in front of a computer screen can be dangerous."

Even Kouga snorted in amusement at that one.

It wasn't as large as her bone boomerang that she had in the game, but Sango held her small sturdy boomerang in her hands. It would do in a pinch. Though she was grateful for the cricket club she chose for her other weapon, she really wished they had been able to find a sword. Too bad they didn't sell them at the sporting goods store. The only ones they had run across in the mall had all been for decorative use only and would have snapped in two the first time she used it.

Miroku wrapped his fingers tighter around his modified javelin. It was a little too flexible for his tastes, but it seemed a better fit than anything else he had tried. It was taking all of his self control to not swing it around like he would a staff, but the people on the street probably wouldn't appreciate it much. Nervously he checked his pocket to make sure that the paper charms were still in there. They were.

As usual, Kouga decided he didn't want any weapons to keep track of. He felt his feet and his fists would be good enough. Anything else would just get in the way. He did, however, carry the bow and arrows that they purchased for when they found Kagome. It had taken awhile to find one that wasn't painted in camouflage colors.

"I still think the crossbow would have been better," groused Kouga.

Sango sighed, "I thought we already had this argument."

"We did," answered Miroku.

"Then why are we having it again?"

"The crossbow is more powerful and easier to use."

Shippo snatched the bow case from Kouga. "But Kagome has only ever used a regular bow. Switching now would take too long for her to get comfortable using it. It's bad enough that this one has these pulleys on it instead of just being a traditional short bow." He sighed, looking at the bow case. "At least we found the ultra-lite bow. It's nearly two pounds lighter than the others. The case is boring though." Shippo grinned, "Later I'll paint it and make it look nice for her."

Kouga grabbed the case back. "Runt."

"Did you get anything for yourself?" Sango asked the youngest member of their group in a desperate attempt to change the conversation. Without Inuyasha to pick on, Shippo seemed to be making it his full time job to annoy Kouga.

"Darts. Pepper spray. Dog whistle. Swiss army knife. Lighter."

"Dog whistle?"

Shippo gave Sango a slightly creepy chuckle as he started blowing on the whistle. "Yup."

"Lighter?" asked Miroku.

"For the fireworks."

Sango opened her mouth to ask what fireworks, but Miroku shook his head while covering her mouth. He was probably right. The less she knew about what that kid was packing, the better.

Originally they had broken off into two groups after purchasing their weapons. They searched the town for any sign of their friends. But when they came up with no leads they met back at the same park where they had parted company hours ago. It was close to midnight, and they were beginning to lose hope.

"I'm hungry," whined Shippo.

Sango's stomach chose that time to gurgle in complaint.

"I guess we all are," chuckled Miroku. "Let's head back to the hotel. We'll order room service and start looking again in the morning."

No one liked the idea of giving up the search. But they were all tired and hungry. Besides, none of them had completely recovered from the extreme malnutrition they had suffered. Shippo's stomach especially had troubles keeping food down.

As Kouga and Shippo fought over carrying Kagome's bow case, Miroku and Sango walked in silence. Neither one of them wanted to speculate on what may have happened to their friends. Seeing Inuyasha as a demon had been a shock. It was impossible. At least, it should have been impossible. Why wasn't Kouga or Shippo still demons? And what the heck happened to Kikyo? One minute she was with them in the basement, and the other she was gone! Practically melted into the shadows! Why didn't she help them free Kagome and Midoriko? And where the heck did Midoriko disappear to when they had gone to find Kouga anyhow? Was disappearing into thin air a priestess thing?

Miroku looked over at Sango. Her brows her were knit together in concentration as she glared at the sidewalk as they moved down the street. He couldn't bear seeing her suffer. So it was out of the complete unselfish goodness of his heart when his hand moved to touch her… purely for comforting purposes… derriere.

The earsplitting screech actually made traffic stop.

"PERVERT!"

The remainder of the trip to the hotel went by fairly quicly. Kouga and Shippo had a difficult time catching up as Sango chased down Miroku. If she hadn't knocked him out, they would never have caught up.

"Were you in track?" asked Kouga as he gasped for breath, not bothering to lend Miroku a hand up.

Considering Sango was still sizzling with anger, Shippo decided to keep his mouth shut. One never knew when the tides of rage would turn. It was best not to be noticed. Where oh where was Kagome to hide behind?

Four weary warriors walked to the hotel and took the elevator up to their room. Once again, they decided they would share a room. It just didn't feel right to be separated.

Shippo dug out the key card and ran it through the lock. One by one they entered the room and dropped their weapons and bags. Yawning loudly, Shippo locked all the locks on the door before turning towards the beds. He was ready for some food, even if it was just soup. He just hoped he could stay awake long enough for the food to arrive.

"Who want room service?" he asked.

No one answered. They were too busy standing and staring in shock at the beds. Grumbling about tall people, Shippo managed to shove Miroku off to the side enough (oddly enough, it was in Sango's direction) so he could get a look at what they were all gaping at.

He gaped too.

There on the bed was Inuyasha and Kagome.

Sound asleep.

Miroku lifted the cover and peeked. Yup, she was fully dressed. If she was, then Inuyasha probably was too, so he didn't bother to check.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" yelled Sango as she rushed the bed.

Inuyasha was up in a flash. His hair went from black to silver in a heartbeat as he jumped protectively, and fully clothed, in front of Kagome. He relaxed a bit when he saw his attacker. But still, she couldn't be allowed to jostle Kagome, so he flew off the bed and tackled her to the ground.

Oof!

Golden eyes glared down at Sango when he heard Kagome groaned painfully in her sleep. Sango, in turn, gulped. Things didn't tend to live long when they were on that end of the demon's glare.

"Don't wake her up," he hissed through his teeth… fangs… whatever.

"We've been searching for you all day!" she hissed right back, using her self defense training to dislodge her attacker in a very painful way. Sure it was a low blow, but she was severely ticked off for their day of searching and worrying. The guys were impressed that Inuyasha wasn't lying puking on the floor. Maybe it had something to do with being in demon form. "Where have you been?"

Inuyasha growled angrily as his claws ripped the carpet as he struggled to keep from taking a swipe at his friend. "We came here."

Sango sat up. She looked over to the other three. They all wore the same disbelieving looks on their faces.

"You were here?" she squeaked.

"Yes."

"The whole time?"

He growled again. "What, are you stupid or something? I said 'yes" already."

Miroku hung his head and tried not to laugh. Not a single one of them had thought to check the hotel. In fact, they hadn't even thought about calling the room. They had been so sure that the demon in him would take her as far away as possible. Talk about irony.

Inuyasha smirked. "Been looking for us, huh?"

"Oh just shut up," Sango snapped at him as she stood up. She stalked over to the phone and jabbed the number for room service. Shippo raced after her and started pointing out things on the menu that he wanted. Kouga disappeared into the bathroom, complaining about supersized sodas.

Miroku sat beside Inuyasha. "Your hair was black when we came in. Now it is silver. Can you control it?"

Inuyasha shook his head. "Nope. I don't have a clue. You know as much as I do."

"Why did you take Kagome?"

The dog demon shrugged. "I dunno. I just knew that I had to. Instincts maybe?" He glanced over to the bed where the miko was sleeping in a heavily drugged sleep. "She's healing fast. Really fast." Too fast. It wasn't a normal healing. But Inuyasha wasn't going to complain.

"Miroku, what do you want to eat?" asked Shippo.

"A cheeseburger."

"They don't have any," replied Sango.

"Spaghetti."

"Nope."

"Pizza?"

"Um… nope. C'mon, hurry up and make a decision."

With a snarl, Miroku stood up and proceeded snatch the menu out of Shippo's hands and began to read off item after item off of the menu, only to have the kitchen staff say that they have just run out.

Inuyasha smiled at his friends. Sango, Miroku, and Shippo were all arguing with whoever was on the phone. Kouga soon joined them, demanding meat. Preferably a nice rare steak.

He glanced back at the door, noticing that all of the locks had been locked. He was a bit embarrassed that he hadn't locked them himself, but when he had finally gotten to the hotel room he was completely wiped out. It had taken all his effort to get Kagome under the covers before the collapsed.

He also noticed the items they had dropped by the door. Weapons. Or potential weapons at any rate. Looking at them squabbling over the phone in hopes of something edible, he wondered if they would have used those weapons on him. He looked over at Kagome then down at his hands. The claws were still there. He had become a demon again. _How? Why?_ Suddenly he was glad that they had weapons. Just in case. He wasn't entirely sure he trusted his demon form.

The curse words filling the room weren't unusual. The fact that they were coming from Sango was. Though her rantings on the conspiracy to keep her starved were fun to watch, Inuyasha was just too tired to keep awake. With a yawn he headed back to bed. He had just pulled back the covers on his side when the phone hit him in the side of the head.

The PHONE!

The names he called Kouga weren't polite, but he felt they were totally deserved.

"That hurt!"

"You're not sleeping with Kagome, you pervert!" Claws or not, there was no way he was letting him sleep with her. Kouga knew the others would back him up on this. Though part of him was hoping that Inuyasha would throw the first punch.

Golden eyes flickered red for a moment.

Quickly, Sango stepped between them before a fight could break out. She grabbed them both by the ears and twisted them before bringing them down to her eye level.

"You will BOTH calm down. Right. Now. Or so help me, I'll maim the both of you so badly you will BEG for death."

"He can't sleep with her!"

"Get your hands off me, wolf!"

"Get away from the bed, you mangy delusional DOG!"

"Back off, Kouga! I'm warning you!"

"SOMEONE has to protect Kagome!"

"She's not YOUR mate to protect!"

Miroku and Sango both froze in their attempts to keep the two males from tearing each other, and their hotel room, apart. They couldn't help but smile. Sango was a bit concerned that Inuyasha still seemed to be thinking in demon terms instead of human, but it was so romantic that she actually sighed. She gave a quick glare at Miroku. Why couldn't that moron be more romantic and less perverted? It was Miroku's turn to sigh.

A muffled groan caused Inuyasha to disappear. At least that's what it looked like. One minute he had his hands around Kouga's throat and pinning him to the wall, and the next he was just gone! Somehow he had defied all laws of physics to be back at Kagome's side in the blink of an eye.

"You woke her up, you idiot!" he scolded Kouga.

"Me?" He sounded offended. "It was your yowling that woke her up!"

"Yowling? Do I LOOK like a blasted CAT? You asOwwwwwwww!" Inuyasha winced as Kagome drug him down to her eye level by a lock of hair that had somehow twisted around her finger. "Leggo, woman!"

Her eyes slowly opened. They were angry and glazed with pain. "Stop shouting," she whispered.

Inuyasha's mouth snapped shut. He glowered at the others in the room, silently forbidding them to raise their voices. Heck, they shouldn't even speak at all. He was about to shove them all out the door when Kagome whispered again.

"Help me sit up."

"Don't be an idiot, wench," he whispered softly. "Go back to bed. We'll talk in the morning."

"We have plans to make," she protested weakly.

"We can make plans in the morning. Get some rest." He brushed his lips against her forehead and tucked the covers back under her chin.

After giving her one more assessing look, Inuyasha grabbed an extra blanket and pillow and tossed them on the floor between the two beds. Without a word he settled down, waiting until Sango crawled into bed with Kagome and the other males got comfortable on the other bed before turning out the lights and closing his eyes.

"You know," said Miroku into the darkness, "This was rather a let down."

"What was?" asked Inuyasha grumpily as he tried to get comfortable. It seemed like only minutes ago he was sound asleep on a nice comfortable bed, holding Kagome to keep her safe, and warm. Now his bed was a hard floor, a thin blanket, and an even thinner pillow. He really hated hotel pillows.

"Well, we were expecting... you know... a battle or something."

"More violence, eh?" No problem. Inuyasha just happened to be in the right mood for a little violence.

"Yeah, something like that."

Inuyasha cracked his knuckles.

"Miroku is so stupid," muttered Shippo as he tried to block out the sound of Miroku being clobbered. No one bothered to dispute that statement.


	29. Decisions

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Decisions

"I'm worried."

Sleepily Kagome opened her eyes and peered across to the other bed at Shippo. "About what?"

He sighed heavily, turning on his side to face his friend. "Every time I pass a door I have this uncontrollable urge to go in and loot the place. I'm gonna turn into some sort of kleptomaniac! And I keep looking for treasure boxes."

"Ah," she laughed, "The side effects of RPG overload. Maybe we'll hunt you down a good shooter game or maybe one of those farming games. That should cure you."

"Or that dating simulation game."

"Quit helping, Miroku," warned Kagome as she attempted to sit up. Her body felt like it had been flattened by a steam roller then ran over with a truck with snow chains. All in all, she felt a little bit better than yesterday.

"Go back to bed," mumbled Inuyasha as he threw his arm over his eyes.

Kagome looked down in between the beds and saw Inuyasha wrapped up in his blanket. It looked like the cloth had come alive in the middle of the night and had attacked him or something. Reaching down she gently took a lock of his hair. It was black again. Nope, no dog ears either. When she looked at his face she saw that he was watching her with now wide awake eyes. Eyes that were no longer golden.

Sango moaned as she rolled out of bed. "I'm starving! Room service better have food this morning! I can't believe we didn't get a single solitary thing to eat last night. They couldn't have possibly have run out of EVERYTHING!"

"Maybe they restocked," suggested Shippo as he inched forward, keeping a close eye on Sango.

"Since last night? Are you delusional?" Her arms flung about wildly in the air. "Can't you see it is a conspiracy to keep us weak and starved?"

"Hmm," he said as he gingerly let his feet touch the floor, inches from Inuyasha's head. His body was tensing. His eyes darted around the room under lowered lashes. Then, without warning he bolted.

For a moment everyone was frozen. Then they realized where he was heading.

"The hot water!" yelped Sango as she jumped from the bed.

Kouga cursed as he too made a beeline for the only bathroom in the room. The two of them stood outside of the door, banging on it and yelling that he better hurry up. Miroku simply mumbled incoherently in his sleep and turned over, spreading himself out over the entire bed. Inuyasha took the opportunity to sneak up on the other bed and steal Sango's spot, snuggling down into the warm covers.

"Inuyasha?"

He groaned. Maybe if he pretended to be asleep she would go back to sleep too.

"Inuyasha? I have to go to the bathroom."

"Can't you hold it?"

She wiggled a bit. "No."

"Kagome… I didn't sleep at all last night. Just give me five minutes."

Smiling warmly she ruffled his hair. "Get some rest, Inuyasha. I'll have one of the others take me to the other room."

Let's see… the only ones who would be carrying her would be either Kouga or Miroku. Nope. Not gonna happen. Grumpily he kicked off the covers, gave one last longing look at the warm bed, then scooped Kagome up and carried her to the door. After swiping the key card to the other room from the dresser (quite the feat considering he was holding Kagome at the time), he hollered out that they would be back.

The other room wasn't far away at all. He let himself into the room and took Kagome into the bathroom.

"You sure you don't need any help?" When she gasped in outrage he held up his hands to ward off any attacks, "I meant that I could go get Sango or something. I'm not a pervert!" _Most of the time_, he amended mentally.

While Kagome was in the bathroom, Inuyasha decided to crawl into one of the other beds. It wasn't warm from being slept in, but it was soft enough. Just as he closed his eyes the door flew open. He cursed at his stupidity for not swiping BOTH keycards to this room as Kouga stomped into the room.

"Sango beat you, huh?"

"Shut up. I LET her go next." He did a little dance. "Isn't Kagome done yet?"

"I dunno. Ask her." He closed his eyes again.

"Uh… I'll wait…"

Soon Shippo came into the room as well. Inuyasha made mental plans to kill Kouga for leaving the door open. He decided to go ahead and add Shippo to that list of people to kill when he jumped up on the bed beside him and started reading items from the breakfast menu. Out loud.

A few minutes later Sango came in as well. Kouga dashed from the room when he saw her. She gave him a wave as he left in a hurry.

"Wonder if I should have told him that Miroku went in to take a shower," she pondered aloud as she sat on the neatly made bed, propping her feet up on the other bed where Inuyasha was trying in vain to sleep. "Have you called room service yet, Shippo? I'm absolutely starving!"

"Inuyasha!"

He groaned. The fates were determined to not let him sleep. Wearily he pulled himself out of bed and went over to the bathroom. Kagome opened the door and peeked out, Inuyasha let himself in. She was properly covered and was leaning wearily against the sink. He frowned at how drained of energy she looked.

"Thanks," she whispered in his ear as he carried her to the bed.

He had just brushed Kagome's hair out of her eyes when Kouga burst into the room, looking like a man about to die in agony. Feeling in a mean mood since all he had wanted was five minutes of peace and quiet that everyone was determined he not have, Inuyasha made a break from the little room, deciding it was the perfect time to take a shower. The whimper he heard on the other side of the door when he slid the lock in place almost made the lack of sleep worth it.

After a nice long hot shower, Inuyasha finally went back into the room. He looked down at the smashed phone by the door.

"No food in the kitchen?" he asked in amusement.

"Can't we just go out to eat?" asked Kagome. The sound came out muffled since she had a pillow over her head. Inuyasha was trying to decide if someone was trying to suffocate her or she was trying to block out all the sounds. Considering the cursing and snarling in the room, he was guessing it wasn't an attempted murder.

"We can't be dragging you all over town," sighed Sango, trying to keep her temper and her voice calm while she lifted the pillow off of Kagome's head.

"Then you guys go out to eat and bring me back something."

The others were eager to go, even as a human with pathetic senses Inuyasha could almost smell the longing to flee. But no one wanted Kagome to feel left out, or jealous, or abandoned. Or hungry.

"Maybe we can just order something delivered," suggested Miroku, who evidently made his way into the previously empty hotel room, hair still damp from his shower.

"Just go have some breakfast. I'll be fine. I'm tired and I'll just sleep." She yawned dramatically. "Just bring me back something."

"What would you like?" asked Sango as she headed for the door.

"Chocolate."

"Ooookay… nothing wrong with chocolate for breakfast," smiled Miroku. "Sounds very nutritional and healthy."

She cracked open one eye and glared. "If I don't get chocolate, just go ahead and kill me."

Shippo was already out the door, bouncing up and down in excitement in the hallway. Sango pushed Miroku out the door and grabbed Kouga's sleeve to pull him along. She reached into Miroku's back pocket and took out his wallet and counted the cash in there. Just enough for a decent meal. Miroku opened his mouth to make a comment, but decided against in, just in case she never did anything like that again if he did.

"Come on, Inuyasha," she called as she counted the money again. "Pancakes await!"

Inuyasha yawned dramatically too. "I think I'll just stay here and keep Kagome company. Maybe catch a nap."

Sango narrowed her eyes at him, slipping the wallet into her own pocket before crossing her arms over her chest. "Last time you were left alone with Kagome, you turned demon and kidnapped her."

"Whatever. Bring me back donuts."

After a short debate, the others finally decided to leave without him.

"Wait!"

With a loud groan, the four friends, who were soooo close to escaping for food, turned to look at Kagome. They were astonished, however, to see her hands glowing pink.

"What in the world?" asked Sango quietly, not really expecting an answer.

Kagome opened her hands slowly. In her palms, the jewel was glowing pink. The gasped in amazement as the jewel slowly pulsated with light.

"Midoriko," whispered Kagome.

The woman appeared as if summoned.

"We were so close," Shippo whimpered to Sango. "We were so close to breakfast…" Sango sadly ruffled his hair.

"You must return to the jewel," Midoriko told Kagome. "You must return immediately."

"What? No way!" exclaimed an outraged Inuyasha, who, the others noticed, suddenly had golden eyes, silver hair, fangs, and claws. His hands were flexing, as if looking for a phantom sword hilt. It was probably a good thing that the weapons were near the door and not within reach of the demon.

"Blast," grumped Miroku, "I was so busy looking at Midoriko that I didn't see him change. What made him change?" The others shrugged.

"What we need to do," growled Inuyasha, which sounded much more threatening now that he was back in demon form, "Is hunt Naraku down and kill him."

Midoriko smiled. "Yes."

The priestess explained to the group that Naraku had found a way into the half of the jewel that was still in his possession, and was training and growing in power. They would have to find him and destroy him before he became unbeatable. She reminded them how time moves differently within the jewel, and that even though only days passed here, months may have passed inside of the jewel.

"How did he get in the jewel?" asked Kagome as she studied the pink jewel in her hand. She found that when she turned the jewel that Midoriko's image would shimmer. "And are YOU in the jewel too?"

"Yes, my soul resides within the jewel. For now. A powerful priestess is the only one who can live in the jewel or place another inside."

"So… does this mean that the jewel is inside of the jewel?"

Midoriko paused, then turned her attention to Shippo. "I do not understand your question, young one."

"Naraku has the jewel. Now he's inside of the jewel with the jewel? How can that be possible?"

The priestess smiled. "It isn't. That is why the jewel must be in the possession of one in this world."

"Who?" asked Kagome.

"Perhaps the one who put him there."

"So we go in, find Naraku, kill him, and come back. Right?"

"Correct."

"Can he die?"

Midoriko smiled at Kagome gently. "Yes. Everyone can die."

"I mean, while we fight inside the jewel, can he really be killed?"

"Yes."

"We could be killed." It wasn't a question this time.

"Yes."

No QUIT options. No restart buttons. No way to End Game. If they go back in the jewel, they may not make it back out. And they had worked so hard to get back out!

"But if he's trapped in the jewel, can't we just leave him there?" asked Inuyasha.

"I wish it were that simple. But it is not. When he is strong enough, he will be able to leave the jewel. And when the jewel is reunited and in his hands, Naraku will be unstoppable. If you wait too long, it will be too late. You must stop him now."

"What happens if we just leave him in there?" asked Shippo.

"Then he will eventually come out on his own. But when he does, he will be all powerful. What do you suppose an all powerful being who desires to posses and dominate all will do?"

Inuyasha put his hand over Kagome's. "We'll go," the others nodded in unison. "But Kagome will stay here."

"What!"

He cringed at her outraged tone, but when he faced her, it was with a face that could have been made from stone. "You're hurt. There is no way that you'll be able to fight. You can't even make it to the bathroom on your own. I won't risk you dying."

"Kagome must go," insisted Midoriko. "You need her power."

"She's HURT!" he snarled.

His claws seemed to lengthen and faint lines of purple began to appear on his face. But Midoriko wasn't afraid. She smiled at the dog demon. "Her body will be whole once she is in the jewel. We will be sending your spirits, not your bodies."

"Can you do that without the machines?" asked Sango, who really wasn't looking forward to the humiliation of being hooked up again.

"Yes."

"But we won't be safe if we're all lying here in comas," said Sango. "What if Naraku's employees come here to try and kill us while we sleep."

"I will protect you. I have considerable power of my own." The priestess actually smirked!

The group looked at each other. They knew that they would be going back to fight. It was inevitable.

"Aren't you IN the jewel though?" asked Kagome.

Midoriko seemed sad. "I am of both worlds for now."

"Why does Inuyasha become a demon in this world?" asked Kouga. "The kid and I can't. The three of us were all demons in the game. Why does HE and Miroku get to keep their powers? Will we get out powers back when we go in the jewel? Can you find a way to let us keep our powers too?"

"It is interesting," she said with a twinkle in her eyes, "To have watched this phenomenon. I believe that he changes when he feels that Kagome is in danger. Somehow the demon in him must have bonded himself to her within the jewel. Being close to Kagome, I feel that he draws on her magic to transform himself into the best suited protector." She turned her gaze towards the others. "As for Miroku, he and Sango had no magical abilities within the game. You get to keep the knowledge you acquired inside. Sango recalls her training as a slayer. Miroku recalls his training as a monk and is able to use the magical scrolls. As for your other questions, I do not yet have the answers. We shall see."

"I should've chosen something non-magical," muttered Shippo and he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"We'll go," Inuyasha said again. "All of us."

Midoriko smiled at each person before closing her eyes and concentrating on her spell.

"Wait!"

All eyes turned to Kagome. She was struggling to sit up. Inuyasha was concerned with how much difficulty she was having sitting up. She had been recovering at an amazing rate, but she was still weak and tired. Maybe having her come along was a bad idea.

"Give us a few hours. Let us call our families and loved ones to talk to them. Let us go get something to eat." She didn't miss the grateful looks sent her way by her hungry friends.

"There is little time, young miko."

"Well, I'm not leaving until I've had chocolate and a bubble bath!" She begged Midoriko to understand, that this may be the last time they had the chance to eat a burger or some chocolate or have a bubble bath. It may be the last time they ever talk to their families. Ever. She didn't want to say the words out loud though, and hoped that the priestess would be able to hear what she wasn't saying.

Luckily, she did.

"You are wise, young miko. Eat and rest. I will return at dusk." Then she was gone.

For a few moments, the friends stared at the empty space where Midoriko had stood. Then they stared at the jewel that lay quietly in Kagome's hand. Eventually, they looked at each other. They were really going back inside.

"I'm ordering the most fattening food on the menu," said Sango, "And having two desserts."


	30. A Reunion and A Fight

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Thirty: A Reunion and a Fight

Steam swirled around the room. It smelled like strawberries.

Inuyasha peered into the mirror, inspecting his jawline for any nicks. He was a bit worried that in his nervousness that he might have butchered his face. Visions of a face covered in little torn up squares of tissue paper caused a rock to lodge in the pit of his stomach. Upon close inspection, however, he found that he seemed to have come out of it relatively unscathed.

Glancing at the tub he wondered if he added enough bubbles. That stupid little bottle that room service brought up surely wasn't enough for a bubble bath… so he added two bottles. He watched the foam build up as he tested the water. _Just how hot is a bubble bath supposed to be?_

He was glad that the others had left already in search of food. It was going to be nice having some time alone with Kagome. They had decided to watch a movie together and have some pizza after the bath. It would be another thirty minutes before the pizza arrived, that should be plenty of time for a bath. Surely no one could take a bath for more than thirty minutes. His own shower had taken less than five.

Satisfied that the bath was hot enough, but not so hot that it would scald Kagome, Inuyasha reached for his aftershave lotion. He puts some in his left hand and set the bottle aside. He dropped the bottle and gasped.

Looking at him from behind his shoulder was Kagome.

With his mouth dropped open, he could only watch as she sauntered closer to him. Not walk. Oh no, nothing that normal or innocent. She sauntered. Complete with hip swaying action and everything! Helplessly he watched her in the mirror as she slipped behind him and wrapped her arms around his chest.

"Ka… Kagome?" He was confused. In all of his dreaming and planning, this was the point where he was supposed to turn around and embrace her. But his body was frozen. Something wasn't right.

"Should… Shouldn't you be in bed?" She nuzzled his neck. He should have felt warmth, but instead it felt as if his blood was turning to ice.

She looked up at him, with love in her eyes. Inuyasha's heart stopped.

"…Kikyo…"

"I've missed you, my love," she purred.

Inuyasha was frozen in horror as she slithered in front of him and stood on her toes to wrap her arms around his neck. He couldn't move. He couldn't even make a sound. It was almost as if he were under a spell. When she put his hands on her hips he could do nothing to stop her. Slowly she lifted her head, until her lips found his. Unable to move, Inuyasha watched in the mirror as she continued to kiss him. All he could think about was how cold he was.

"Inuyasha?"

Kagome!

Just like that her voice broke the spell. Inuyasha roughly pushed Kikyo away from him, wiping his mouth in disgust. Her features began to sharpen, losing the softness of Kagome's. She blocked Inuyasha's exit.

"I love you," she told him.

"Get out of my way."

She gave him a hard look, no longer attempting a smile. "You were mine first, Inuyasha. And you will always be mine."

Suddenly she was gone. Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief. Was she a hallucination? A bad dream? He took a step. The splash brought his attention back to his environment. The tub was overflowing. With a colorful curse he reached in and pulled the plug to let some of the water out, and turned the faucet off. Once he deemed there was enough room in the tub for a body without it overflowing again, he decided it was time to fetch Kagome. He just hoped she could breathe in this fog of steam and spilled aftershave lotion. Drying off his arm with a clean towel he glanced at his reflection and shuddered at the memory.

Trying to put the priestess out of his mind and focus on getting Kagome into the tub, he turned the knob. Well, he tried to.

"Kagome?"

He tried the knob again. When it didn't work, he began to shake the door. "KAGOME!"

There was a muffled sound of distress coming from the other room. Inuyasha's stomach dropped. Kikyo. Kikyo was with Kagome.

Calling himself a thousand names, all uncomplimentary, he continued to scream for his friend's name and batter the door. Kikyo hadn't left. Her words haunted him. He would always be hers? Would that include… getting rid of Kagome? But surely she wouldn't hurt her reincarnation!

A cry came from the other room that ripped his soul to shreds. His claws raked through the door. He didn't need the mirror to tell that he had turned demon again.

The door splintered, and the now silver haired dog demon stood snarling over the scene in front of him. Kikyo was standing beside the bed. Kagome's hands were trapped within Kikyo's. The pink light of Kagome's aura, was slowly crawling up Kikyo's arm, being absorbed by her blue light.

"NO!" he screamed.

Kikyo paused to glance his direction. She frowned at his demon form. Inuyasha flexed his claws to rip through the other miko. It wouldn't be murder. After all, the other woman was already dead.

Unfortunately, it seemed as if Inuyasha was once more frozen in his spot. The woman must be a witch, not a priestess!

"You helped Naraku into the jewel, didn't you?" accused Inuyasha. He knew that he needed to stall for time. He had to figure out a way to free himself. If that failed, then at least he could stall her long enough for the others to come back. She couldn't freeze them all!

"Of course I did."

"He's evil, Kikyo. Why would you do that?"

"He agreed to give me what I most desired."

"Me?"

Kikyo laughed, nearly dropping Kagome's hand. "I do care for you, Inuyasha. However, I would not risk my eternal soul for you."

"What could be worth your soul?"

"Her soul." She glared at Kagome. "My soul. With it, I will live again." Her hands shook in anger. "This time I will live my life the way that I should have been allowed to live it. I will have a home and a family of my own. And," she smiled, "I will have you."

The less than eloquent curse word expressed Inuyasha's denial.

"Ah, but you will be mine, Inuyasha. You love me. But you also love this pitiful little girl. But don't worry, soon I will have her soul, and we will be one. We are the same, after all. Loving me will be the same as loving her. You will have us both."

"You are NOTHING alike!"

"You try my patience, demon. Be a good dog and sit."

With that word, Inuyasha fell to the ground.

"And not even a 'thank you' for giving Kagome back half of the Shikon jewel. Such bad manners, Inuyasha."

"You need it to capture Kagome… don't you?"

"I knew you were smart. Yes, the jewel is needed for me to absorb her soul. Once she is weakened enough, I will transfer it back."

"Huh?" _Why go to all that work just to put the soul back?_

"And I will have a body once more."

_Oh. That's why. Well, that just isn't going to happen._ Inuyasha felt the sit spell weaken. He just needed a few more minutes…

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Inuyasha's ears flattened at the scream. The spell gave way, and he jumped to his feet. In one bound he was by Kagome's side. Her eyes were glowing pink, and she looked like she was in terrible pain. But it wasn't her that was screaming. Golden eyes looked at the priestess in front of him, who was desperately trying to drop Kagome's hand. He could almost see the souls of the priestesses that Kikyo had absorbed as they flowed down her arm. Some of the souls were absorbed into Kagome's skin, others simply floated away once they were freed.

"Let go!" Inuyasha yelled, though he wasn't sure which miko he was yelling at.

Kagome dropped Kikyo's hand. Kikyo dropped to the floor and Kagome began screaming and crying.

"Ssshhh… Kagome… its okay. Everything is okay. Shhhh…." He snarled at the woman on the floor. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?"

"She is dying every death of the others. She is feeling their pain as if it were her own. Had I been allowed to consume her, she would not have to go through such agony. She would have been spared."

"She would have been dead!"

Kikyo shrugged. "We would have been combined. Though I would have been in control."

"Inuyasha…" begged Kagome. "Inuyasha… help me…"

He held her close, as close as he dared. "How do I help her?"

"Her spirit will break, Inuyasha. She is not strong enough. Let me have her, and I will take away her pain."

"I will kill you before you touch her again."

Kikyo smiled sadly. "I am already dead."

"Deader, then."

There was one knock on the door before it swung open.

"Hey, Inuyasha, we brought back some burgers. They are a little cold but we fi…. Is that Kikyo on the floor?" Miroku stood at the door holding three bags of fast food, slightly transparent with grease at the bottom. Shippo and Sango were trying to peek around him.

Kikyo stood up regally. "Another time, perhaps." Then she disappeared.

"Oookay… I think we missed something."

"Oh, you think so, Shippo?"

"No need to be sarcastic, Sango." Shippo crossed his arms over his chest, the same pose that Inuyasha often struck.

Kagome's cries turned to whimpers, and Inuyasha rocked her gently. After a little prompting, he told his friends what had gone on since they left. He told them about everything Kikyo had done, and had tried to do. Eventually Kagome quieted, though Inuyasha couldn't make himself let her go.

"So…" said Kouga as he ate one of the burgers. "You kissed a dead girl?"


	31. Back in the Proverbial Saddle

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Thirty-One: Back in the Proverbial Saddle

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" wailed the distressed miko as she dropped to her knees.

"FOXFIRE!"

"Poor Kagome," snickered Sango.

"Come on," said Miroku cheerfully, "It isn't all THAT bad."

"Quit being a baby," admonished Inuyasha as he nudged her with his toe. "Stand up and let's get going."

"FOXFIRE!"

"It's so unfair!"

Sango kneeled down beside her friend and pat her on the shoulder. "Oh, Kagome... it isn't the end of the world. Besides, it looks cute on you."

Inuyasha had to hide his grin when Kagome growled.

"I'm not supposed to look CUTE! I'm supposed to look like a warrior on her way to defeat an evil villain. I'm NOT supposed to look like some helpless school girl heroine from an anime!"

Sango patted her again. "Yeah, but some of those anime girls can really kick butt."

Kagome sniffled and smiled.

"Besides, maybe it's some kind of special armour. Remember that battle bikini one of your characters had to wear to deflect spells?"

"Please, Sango, I'm trying to repress that memory."

"So are we done being all touchy feely? Can we go now?"

"FOXFIRE!"

"If you say 'foxfire' ONE MORE TIME, runt, I will knock you back through the portal missing a few teeth. You're going to set someone on fire!"

"Grouch."

Kagome sighed and stood up. "You are so impatient, Inuyasha. He's just excited to have powers again."

"I really like the outfit," Miroku leered as Kagome passed him. Once he came to he came to the conclusion that some thoughts were best left unspoken.

At the beginning of their second adventure within the jewel, Inuyasha made it very clear that they were heading straight towards Naraku. That had caused a little bit of conflict within the group. Sango and Kagome felt that they should get a little bit stronger before the go off to fight Naraku. Inuyasha felt that they should head straight towards him before he got any stronger. It was Miroku who suggested the compromise. They would fight the random battles if they had to, but they were not to go off seeking battles just to level up.

"How do we even know we are going in the right direction?" asked Shippo as they headed east.

"The voices told me," said Kagome.

"Please don't get her started on the voices," begged Inuyasha. "It's just too creepy."

"What do the voices sound like? What do they tell you?"

Kagome looked at Shippo quizzically. "I thought I already told you guys about that back in the hotel room."

Shippo smiled innocently, sparing Inuyasha only a momentary smug glance. "You did, but it is just so interesting! Please tell me again! Pleeeease!"

It was much more difficult to resist Shippo when he looked like a little fox kit demon. So Kagome smiled indulgently. "Well," she said, "The voices are from the souls of the other priestesses who went from Kikyo's body to mine. Even though they were all once a part of one soul, each one contained their own unique life, so they are all different personalities. Different people. And they have different strengths. A couple of them obviously have really good sense of direction, because they are certain that Naraku is in this direction."

"Will the souls stay a part of you after we defeat Naraku?"

Kagome would have stopped walking if Inuyasha hadn't dragged her along beside him. "I don't know, Shippo. I hadn't really thought about it. Some of the souls decided to go on to the light. I don't know what these will decide. It's possible that since the soul was split for so long, that it is split for good. They might just be lending me their strength until they decide to pass on."

Inuyasha tried very hard not to listen to the conversation. Knowing that lots of different spirits were currently enjoying a vacation in Kagome's body made him feel a little uneasy. Instead he focused on Miroku and Sango's conversation, who were hanging back so that they could talk privately. Though that one wasn't any more comforting.

"I thought that Kagome went mad," whispered Sango, perhaps forgetting that the dog demon had phenominal hearing. "Should we really be trusting her judgement to lead us? I mean, don't get me wrong, I love her... not like THAT you pervert!" she hissed. "I love her, but there are voices telling her what to do. Voices, Miroku!"

"I know, Sango."

Inuyasha's fists clenched in rage. They were doubting Kagome's sanity. He couldn't let Kagome know, it would break her heart. He would see them all turned into kibble before he allowed them to break her heart.

"Midoriko said that although it was unusual, Kagome is still Kagome." He sighed. "Though one has to wonder what the effect of so many voices speaking to you will have on your psyche. Can one of the personalities take her over, as Kikyo was planning to do? Is Kagome strong enough to fight them if they tried? Her body is still healing..."

"I may not have demon hearing," called Kagome from in front, "But I'm not deaf."

Sango and Miroku both blushed. Inuyasha cursed. He hadn't wanted her to know what they were talking about. He KNEW he should have left the others behind with Kouga in the real world to guard their bodies.

"Kagome..."

"It's okay, Sango... but if you have questions... just ask me."

Sango nodded.

"Could you really hear them?" whispered Inuyasha as they continued to walk.

"Nah. One of the voices told me what was going on."

Creepy.

"I'm more worried about what Kouga is doing with our bodies," said Shippo as he hopped onto Kagome's shoulder. He didn't see Inuyasha stiffen. "I mean, what if he puts my hand in a bowl of warm water? What if he draws pictures on my face?"

Kagome laughed, "I don't think you have to worry, Shippo. Kouga is on the phone with Ayame right now trying to convince her he hasn't forgotten their second year anniversary of their first kiss."

Inuyasha turned to her in surprise. "How do you know that?"

She smiled at him secretively. "I just know."

He shivered. Definitely creepy.

Just then, Kagome heard the music that signaled an oncoming battle.

Two boar demons, two condor demons, and one shadow demon with wings attacked the group. Inuyasha jumped into battle, taking both condors out in one swing of his sword. Sango threw her boomerang and knocked out one of the boar demons. Miroku cast a spell to put a barrier around the group. Kagome sent an arrow flying through one of the shadow demons.

Yes. Through. As in, the arrow went right through the body without connecting with any flesh.

"Uh oh..."

Inuyasha's sword also made no contact. But the wave of ice shards that they hissed out made plenty of contact with the group of warriors. It ripped through their clothes and drew blood on every member.

"So how come you aren't insane?" asked Miroku. "Kikyo said that you were broken in spirit as well as body."

Kagome glared at the monk. "You think you could pick a better time for a conversation, Miroku? Like, maybe when we aren't fighting shadow creatures we can't touch but can rip us to shreds?"

Miroku shrugged and cast another barrier spell. "Do all your personalities get in such bad moods?"

Kagome let another arrow fly. "Stop talking like I have a multiple personality disorder, Miroku. I just... have unexpected guests... in my head..."

Miroku laughed.

"Hey, Shippo," said Inuyasha. "Why don't you give it a shot?"

The fox kit grinned. "FOXFIRE!"

The shadow creature burst into tiny pixels.

"Well..." said Kagome. "That was pretty impressive!"

"Way to go Shippo!" Sango grinned.

"Oi, runt, you have one more to finish off."

"FOXFIRE!"

After the last demon was dispatched, Kagome and Shippo began searching the ground for items that may have been dropped. The miko was glad that her bag was waiting for her, and that it still contained all the items from their previous journey.

"I wish Kirara could have come," sighed Sango as she bent down to pick up one of Shippo's transforming leaves.

Kagome stood up and stretched. "I know, but you wouldn't want to risk us not being able to bring her back. I have no idea how she managed to escape into our world... but I don't know if whatever magic worked will work again."

Sango smiled sadly, "True."

A hand landed lightly on her shoulder. "I will keep you company until then," Miroku whispered. Of course, two seconds later he was laying flat on his back with an angry demon exterminator heavily pressing her foot into his ribs.

"Keeping me company does NOT mean putting your hand THERE!"

Miroku smiled. At least when she's fuming she doesn't have time to be sad. After carefully dislodging himself he stood up and straightened his robes.

"You were going to tell us why you are not insane," said Miroku as he gave his staff a twirl. "Kikyo said that..."

"DON'T use that creatures name in my presence, monk," growled the dog demon.

"Who? Kik..."

Growl.

"Ohhh, okay. Kagome, when that woman..."

Growl.

"... when that creature..."

Growl.

"Oh for pete's sake, Inuyasha! Let the man talk!" Kagome stood with her hands on her hips and glared.

Miroku cleared his throat, making sure to keep Kagome AND Sango between him and the irate dog demon.

"We were told that your spirit was broken. That re-living the deaths of the others who came before you would break you."

With a sad sigh, Kagome started walking to the east again. "Yeah, it was awful. Naraku did some... horrible... really horrible things to those women. And yes, it was like I was there. Like it was me." She looked away. "I'll have nightmares for the rest of my life, Miroku, there's no doubt about that."

"Kagome... I'm sorry..."

She turned and gave him a small smile, taking Inuyasha's hand and hugging Shippo to her. "It's okay, Miroku. But, those women gave me other memories too, not just of their death. They were happy women once. Brave. Strong. Fierce. They had wonderful lives and did wonderful things."

She walked closer to Inuyasha. "I also got a glimpse of Kikyo's life." She felt Inuyasha vibrate as he growled. "She was so sad. Most of the others wanted to be priestesses. It was an honor, and it was what they lived for. Kikyo was a priestess because it was expected of her as the eldest daughter. But all she ever really wanted was a family of her own. A husband and a dozen or so children. Being forced to become a priestess stole all of her dreams. It essentially stole her life."

"Don't ask me to feel sorry for her, Kagome. She tried to hurt you. I can't forgive her."

"Just don't hate her, okay?" She nudged him playfully. "Hate isn't good for your soul."

"One of those voices tell you that?"

She grinned. "Yup!"

He grimaced. "You know that's kinda disturbing don't you?"

"Yup!"

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Author's Note:

Thanks to Shoomy2003 for beta reading this chapter for me! Get better soon!


	32. Hide and Seek

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Thirty-Two: Hide and Seek

Naraku had to die.

Inuyasha shook Kagome's arm in hopes of waking her up. It was another nightmare. She was another one of those priestesses and Naraku was killing her. Again. Usually it would start with a whimper. Then she would start thrashing. Her heart rate would race, threatening to burst. Then it would just… stop… her heart, not the dream. So far he had been able to wake her up, but it had taken years off of his life. And he lived in fear that the next time his luck might run out and she wouldn't wake up.

Not that he would intentionally let the dreams get that far. No. At the first whimper he would be at her side, calling her, shaking her, trying to get her to wake up. Sometimes she would wake up right away, but sometimes the dream would take her all the way to the end. Inuyasha suspected it depended on which priestess inside of Kagome was doing the dreaming. He wasn't sure if they were controlling the dream, trying to work through their own deaths by reliving them, or were torturing Kagome because she was alive and they were dead. Who knew the reason? He didn't. And he didn't care either. All he cared about was getting the dreams to stop.

Oh yes. Naraku had to die for what he did. For what he was doing to Kagome.

His first preference is to kill him nice and slow. And as painfully as possible. Maybe even recreate some of those torture sessions that Kagome dreamed about every night. Possibly all of them if he could keep him alive long enough to survive them. Then again, there was something to be said about a quick death. The sooner he was out of their lives, the better.

"Wake up, Kagome." He didn't even care that he had resorted to pleading.

Her heart rate began to speed up. Inuyasha cursed. These were the worst dreams. These were the ones where she died.

"KAGOME!" Maybe he could wake her up in time.

Her voice squeaked and her mouth opened in a silent scream. Then her heart stopped. Inuyasha pulled the young miko into his arms, trying not to cry. He ached. Literally ached. His own heart stopped as he begged Kagome to wake up.

"Ugn."

His heart began to beat once more.

"Kagome," he whispered.

Her eyelashes fluttered and she looked up into his golden eyes. For a moment she looked disoriented and confused. Then embarrassed. She pushed away from the dog demon and sat up. Looking around the camp she noticed that the others were not there.

"Where is everyone?"

Inuyasha took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "I sent them on ahead."

"I guess I fell asleep."

"Yeah, you really gotta stop with those cat naps, Kagome."

She stood up and stretched. "They say that naps invigorate you. It's good for your mental health."

"Not for mine," he grumbled as he stood up as well. Experience taught him that she wouldn't want to talk about the dreams. She never talked about the dreams. "Let's catch up with the others."

Sometimes when she would wake up she was a little reluctant to have any sort of physical contact. Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief when this time wasn't one of those times. He never asked about the dreams. He wasn't sure if he could handle them. Not yet. He was barely holding on to his rage as it was. The dreams would surely send him over the edge.

Kagome wrapped her arms around his neck and he grasped her legs as she rode piggy back. He smiled when she let out a little squeal of excitement as he ran. Picking up speed he managed to make her giddy with laughter. She loved it when they ran fast. It was another one of the reasons why he sent the others ahead. Besides the fact that he didn't want Kagome embarrassed by having everyone see her thrash around in her nightmares (or scare them), it gave him a great excuse for taking the miko for a run. He could make her laugh.

It didn't take long to catch up with the others. It would have taken an even shorter amount of time had he followed them instead of taking the scenic route.

"Have a nice nap?" asked Sango.

"Oh yeah, dreams of fluffy bunnies…" Kagome said as she lowered herself down to the ground to walk beside her friends. Inuyasha tried not to feel angry at the demon slayer for the comment. After all, he had worked hard at keeping the nightmares a secret from the others, it shouldn't bother him so much when they didn't know to stay away from a subject. Still irked him though.

At least no one asked why she was the only one who had dreams while they were in the game. Sure the others all slept, but it was a dreamless sleep.

"Fluffy bunnies?"

Kagome grinned at Shippo. "Yeah, fluffy bunnies armed with Algebra books. Talk about a nightmare!"

For the next hour they talked about dreams. Sango told about a dream involving dancing in a ballet in a duck costume. Shippo told about a dream where he was a hundred feet tall and kept stepping on everyone on accident. Miroku… well… he had some rather interesting dreams to share as well. Some of them resulted in him getting whacked over the head. Kagome told about her dreams about being chased by mathematics equations. Inuyasha kept his dreams to himself.

Kagome was in the middle of telling how she was outrunning a herd of polynomials when she suddenly stopped talking. She cocked her head to the side as if listening to someone.

"He's close."

Inuyasha froze. "Naraku?"

"Yes. She says he is close, and he is wearing a baboon pelt." She wrinkled her nose in distaste.

Inuyasha sniffed the air. It wasn't that he didn't trust the voices in Kagome's head… well… yes… it was that he didn't trust the voices. He was holding them responsible for the nightmares. At any rate, he would believe it when he saw, or smelled, it.

Sure enough, there was his scent. It was very faint, but it was there.

The dog demon followed his nose and led the group through the woods. Steadily the scent grew stronger.

"He's close."

"I KNOW that Kagome. I can smell it."

"Don't get huffy with me, mister."

Inuyasha turned his head to glare at the miko. The glare intensified when she smirked at him. Smirked!

"After all… the VOICES told me."

The dog demon snarled and kicked at the dirt. He was about to say some things he would likely regret very soon. Even as he opened his mouth, he knew what he was about to say would get him in some serious trouble.

"There he is!"

Who would have thought that Naraku himself would have been the one to save Inuyasha from certain death?

The group turned their attention to where Kagome was pointing. Sure enough, there stood a figure wrapped in a baboon pelt and reeking of Naraku's scent. Predictably, Inuyasha made several threats that were a physical impossibility (though showed some great imagination) and prepared to fight. But as he reached for his sword, something a little less predictable happened.

"He disappeared!" gasped Sango

"But… that shouldn't be possible!" Shippo shook his head. "He isn't a game sprite. Or even a spirit. He should still be confined to certain physical laws, like we are."

Kagome looked around, then slung her bow over her shoulder and picked up the pack she had dropped. "Yeah, well, I don't sense him anymore."

"Keh." Inuyasha scoffed. "I don't SMELL him anymore. I guess that means he's gone."

Clenching her fists, Kagome frowned at Inuyasha. Then, without a word, she picked a direction and started walking. Sango and Shippo decided to keep her company while Miroku blocked Inuyasha's path.

"Any reason why you are trying to pick a fight with Kagome."

"I ain't picking a fight." Inuyasha stepped to the side, only to be blocked again. "And it isn't any of your concern anyhow."

"Sure it is."

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Oh… is it?" He took a step closer to the monk. "And just why is that?"

Not even blinking at the threat that the dog demon was trying to say with his body language, Miroku looked him in the eyes. "She is an integral part of this group and the main reason why we are here. What happens to Kagome effects us all. Besides, she is my friend and I care about her." He paused dramatically. "Like a younger sister."

Inuyasha continued to growl.

"It's about the dreams, isn't it?"

The dog demon stopped growling.

"You're frustrated with your inability to keep her safe from her dreams. You are angry at the souls inside of her who seem to be causing her great mental distress. You want to fight with somebody, and the only one you can safely fight without the fear of the mindless killing beast inside of you take over is Kagome."

Inuyasha's mouth hung open for a moment. "Since when did you get so smart?"

"I'm a monk," Miroku grinned. "It's my job to be wise."

Snorting in derision, Inuyasha laughed. "I don't think the word 'wise' would be the word I'd use to describe you."

Miroku made some smart comment, but Inuyasha didn't really hear it. His ears were trained on the sound of Kagome's feet racing back towards him. The monk was completely forgotten by the time she raced back into the clearing. She was grinning.

"They said he went this way!" she called as she sailed past him.

Usually he would have at least make some sort of token argument, but he was just relieved that Kagome seemed to be over being angry. He wondered if he still had to apologize even if she wasn't mad anymore. He sighed. Knowing women, she wouldn't forget the argument. Elephants had nothing on women in the memory department.

Picking up speed, Inuyasha nabbed Kagome and swung her around onto his back as he ran in the direction she had indicated.

"I wasn't mad at you," he tried to explain.

"You were just frustrated. And you hate the voices in my head. I understand. I shouldn't have brought them up like that. I'm sorry."

"You can't apologize when I'm apologizing."

"Sure I can."

"No you can't."

"Can too."

"Can not!"

By this time they had stopped running and were standing facing each other yelling at the top of their lungs. They were almost down to yelling about one being made of rubber and the other glue when the other three travelers caught up with them.

"Who started the fight this time?" asked Shippo.

"We aren't fighting," growled Inuyasha. "We're apologizing."

Three sets of eyebrows raised simultaneously. The sight of it was enough to send Kagome into a fit of giggles.

Suddenly Inuyasha froze. He sniffed the air.

"Naraku."

Sure enough, not twenty yards away, was the figure in a baboon pelt.

"Voices on a coffee break?"

"Shut up, Inuyasha."

Once again Inuyasha yelled out some rather dire threats as he took out his sword and prepared to attack. He leapt through the air and came back down to the earth with powerful force. And once again, the figure disappeared without a trace and without so much as a scratch. There wasn't a scent of him in the air. At least not for the next hour. They found him and lost him almost a dozen times by the time that night fell.

It was decided that it would be best to try and get some sleep before they began the hunt again in the morning. It was unsettling to have the baboon pelt floating in the air in the distance, but the group chose to ignore it as best as they could. After awhile they barely noticed it was there.

"It's like a really weird game of Hide and Seek," commented Shippo as he settled down to sleep.

Everyone said their goodnights. Kagome closed her eyes, until she was sure that the others were asleep. She wasn't planning on sleeping unless she absolutely had to. Besides the fact that she could constantly feel the presence of the pelt in the distance, she was terrified of falling to sleep and having another one of those dreams. It wasn't a surprise to find that Inuyasha wasn't planning on sleeping either. She grinned at the dog demon for a moment before getting up and going over to him. They sat together in silence for a few minutes.

"What was your favorite game as a kid?" she asked him. She was glad she did when she felt him relax. "Was it Hide and Seek?"

"Nah. I preferred Combat Tag."

"Combat Tag?" She rested her head on his shoulder and chuckled. "Do I even want to know what that is?"

"Probably not. What was your favorite game?"

Kagome stilled.

"It isn't Hide and Seek."

"Oookay… so what was it?"

She sat straight up. "No, Inuyasha. He wasn't playing Hide and Seek with us. I think it was Follow the Leader."

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

Author's Note:

Sorry it took so long to get out this chapter, I've had a run of bad luck that kept me from writing. Thanks Shoomy2003 for proof reading this chapter for me.


	33. Temptations

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Thirty-Three: Temptation

"So… we're just going to follow this baboon pelt all the way to Naraku on the advice from the voices in your head?"

"Yup."

Miroku shrugged and smiled. "Okay. Good enough for me."

"But isn't it a trap?"

Kagome grinned at Sango as she straightened the straps of the backpack. "Yup."

Sango shared a look with Miroku, then she shrugged as well. "Just checking." She walked a few steps before asking, "Do any of those voices tell you if we are going to win or not?"

Kagome got quiet for a moment, obviously having an inner dialogue with one of the priestesses. The she shook her head. "No. None of them seem to have any kind of precognitive abilities." She quickened her pace to walk beside Sango. She linked arms with the slayer. "But don't worry, I know we'll win!"

"Can you see into the future?" asked a curious fox kit.

"Nah, but I have something better!"

"What's that?"

"Faith!" She gave Sango's arm a squeeze before dropping back once more to walk beside the dog demon. "Faith," she repeated softly.

She wasn't just saying it either. There wasn't a doubt in Kagome's mind that Naraku didn't stand a chance against them. Yeah, he may be strong, but he is only one man. Well, monster. She couldn't really bring herself to think of him as a man. And if there was one thing she learned from all those games is that if you have a good team of good offensive and defensive members, you are unbeatable, no matter how great the boss fight may be. As long as they stuck together and supported each other there was no way they could lose.

A warm hand on her forearm froze Kagome's steps. She looked up into a pair of apprehensive golden eyes. She couldn't help but smile when she saw his nose twitching as he sniffed the air.

"We're close."

"I know."

He paused for a moment. Looking over her head into the trees he avoided eye contact. "If you aren't ready for this, we can still turn back."

"No."

"Not that we would be giving up, stupid. Just giving you more time to heal."

Kagome smiled, touched by his concern. "Hmm… I seem to recall someone mentioning that the longer we wait, the stronger Naraku gets. No side trips."

Putting her hands behind her back, the miko walked after her friends in order to hide the grin on her face as he cursed colorfully. It just wouldn't do for him to ever find out that his potty mouth amused her to no end.

"We can make ONE side trip."

The amusement faded quickly as she realized that Inuyasha was really worried about her. Her nightmares probably disturbed him just as much as they disturbed her. Maybe even more. It occurred to her that he wasn't worried so much about her physical health as her mental health. Was he worried that she would freak out if she met the man who had beaten her nearly to death and murdered her nightly in her dreams?

"I can do it."

For a moment Inuyasha was still. Then he gave a curt nod before pushing her in the direction that the others were walking. It was tempting to let their footsteps drag, but they knew that they could not put this off. It was time to face Naraku.

Though they had worked hard to get there and had fought countless battles, they still felt ill prepared when they first caught sight of the ominous looking castle.

"Well," said Shippo, "That's just creepy looking."

The others nodded in agreement. After a few moments to collect themselves and make any sort of last minutes preparations (checking supplies, say a few prayers, potty breaks…), they decided that it was time to follow the floating baboon pelt into the castle. Together they stepped through the darkened entrance.

Too bad they didn't end up together when they got to the other side.

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

"FOXFIRE!"

With the green light from his fire, Shippo looked around for his friends.

"Great," he grumbled, "It split us up again."

He took a breath and took in his surroundings. He had expected stone walls and medieval torches on the wall. What he didn't expect was that he would be standing in the empty hallway of his old high school.

"Oh good, I'm in He…" he stopped in mid phrase as he saw a movement in the shadows. Quickly he extinguished his flame.

Not that turning out his flame did any good. As soon as it went out all the florescent lights in the hallway came on, temporarily blinding him. He put his hand up to his eyes to shade it from the glare. The shadow went from being singular to plural. There were two shapes now. One shape was wearing a baboon pelt.

Fighting Naraku by himself wasn't really in any of the battle plans, but Shippo was determined to fight until the end. If nothing else, if he was following the game patterns that he had set up himself, fighting him would at least whittle down his hit points some. Maybe it would be easier for the others later on. That was a pretty big IF though.

"Do you honestly believe that you are man enough to cause me any harm?" laughed the man coming slowly towards him. "You are weak. Pathetic."

Shippo glared silently as he reached into his pocket for the transformation leaves. Ideas were thought of and discarded quickly. His specialties were illusion and defense, not taking down maniacal evil demons single-handedly. _But_, he told himself, _I am not completely defenseless. I may not kill him, but I CAN hurt him._

He grabbed a handful of leaves, prepared to make a dozen doppelgangers of himself so that he could attack in the confusion. But Naraku's words caused him to freeze.

"I can make her want you."

"What?"

"Kagome. You can not hide your feelings for her from me, young one. You love her, but she only sees you as a child."

"Shut up! She's just my friend!"

"I can make her want you," Naraku purred.

"No…" Sure he had strong feelings for Kagome. Yeah, he maybe had a bit of a crush on her in the beginning, but he didn't anymore. She loves Inuyasha.

"She sees you as a child, but I can make her see you as a man."

Shippo's mouth went dry. His hand clenched around the leaves in his pocket. _Kagome would see me as a man?_

Naraku swept his hand to bring the kit's attention to the school hallway. "They laughed at you. They all laughed at you. You have always been the baby. The child. The kid. Too young for a driver's license even though you are in college. You don't fit in. You have never fit in. Kagome could never love you the way you are now. Not while you are so much younger than she is. Perhaps in ten years, if she has not married that ignorant thug that she is currently enamored with."

"He's not a thug," Shippo denied weakly.

"But I can change that, Shippo Seriyo. I can make you dreams come true."

Not that he was really interested… not really… but he was compelled to ask. "How?"

Naraku smiled. He stopped walking once he was a couple of yards away. "I have great power. I can move time forward for you, make you older. Five years? Ten? You tell me how many years you would like added and I can do that. You are intelligent. You have wit and charm. It would not take Kagome long to see that you are the kind of man that she needs in her life."

"That's not possible," Shippo whispered.

"It is. If you have enough power, anything is possible."

"Why?"

The chuckle the echoed in the hall seemed to lack all humor. "Do not think that I do this out of the kindness of my heart. There is always a price to pay. You are a brilliant young man, I would like for you to work for me. In the real world. You can name your price. You will have more than enough money to keep any woman in the world in the comfort she deserves."

"A job?"

"Nothing dastardly," Naraku assured him. "Head of the programming department, specializing in computer games. You would be paid an obscene amount of money to play with computers and games all day. A dream job."

Shippo shook his head. "Money isn't the most important thing in the world! I don't need your job! I don't need your money!"

"But think of the other benefits." Naraku smiled again and shifted to the side, revealing the other person in the shadows.

"Kagome!"

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

"Helloooo!"

Sango coughed twice. All the calling had been hard on her throat. Oh what she wouldn't give for a hard piece of candy or a throat lozenge. Suddenly she missed snack machines. _Where is everyone? _ Somehow she had ended up back outside, though she didn't recognize the wooded area and the castle was nowhere in sight.

"Helloooooooooo!"

_You'll always be alone._

Sango froze in midstep. She looked around to try and find who had whispered to her. But the woods were quiet. Not even any wildlife made any sounds.

"Who are you?" she called out.

_You'll always be alone. _

"That isn't funny!" Sango tried to project as much anger as she could into her voice. "If you want to fight, show yourself!"

_You'll never be loved._

The demon slayer grabbed her sword with one hand while using the giant boomerang as a shield with the other. Whoever it was thought that they could try and cause her to feel emotionally insecure. Sango snorted. Just because she was a woman didn't mean that she was a slave to her emotions.

_He will never love you._

Not that she was emotionless, she did have feelings. And that last dig cut pretty deep. She knew who the 'he' was. She was also pretty sure who was doing the whispering now. It wasn't really in the plans to fight solo, but she was pretty sure she could take off a limb or two. If she was lucky she could take off the head. Some back up would have been nice, but she was ready to fight.

"Come out, Naraku!"

_How could he love you? You are not even a woman_, the voice taunted maliciously.

"I'm not listening to you! Come out and fight, you coward!"

_A woman is soft and warm. There is no part of you that is soft._

"Fight me!"

_A woman is not so quick to fight. A woman is gentle and sweet. There is no part of you that is either gentle or sweet._

Sango whirled around, trying to locate the voice.

_He does not see you as a woman._

"Liar!" She screamed into the woods. "Now fight me or leave me alone!" Personally she was hoping he'd fight her. Questioning her femininity was a sure way to set her blood on fire and send her into a killing rage. She was feminine, dang it! And she'd clobber anyone who said different.

_I can help you._

"What?"

_I can make him see you as a woman._

Sango glared. "You don't know what you're talking about."

_Does he look at other women when he is with you? Does he try to touch other women? Flirt with them? You are not enough for him as you are._

"Yes, I am." Sango wasn't about to admit that the things that he was saying hurt her, and that some of it was true.

_No. But I can help you._

She paused, curious by the offer. "How?"

A figure appeared behind her. "If you have enough power, anything is possible."

Spinning on her heel, Sango swung her sword in the direction of the voice. He simply disappeared and reappeared a few feet to the left. Each time she would swing her sword he would dodge until she was nearly ready to snap with frustration.

"Look at yourself, Sango Chikara. Sweaty. Filthy. Nearly clawing the earth like some animal. If you were a man, could you love a woman like you?"

Her arms felt like rubber, she barely managed to push herself back up to her feet. "And you can fix me? Make me worthy of love?"

Naraku smiled. "I can."

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"Imagine, Miroku Kinomoto, all the women you could possibly want. And all of them willing to do anything you could possibly imagine."

"A manager with fringe benefits?" asked the monk from the middle of an empty dance floor that looked like it came straight from one of those old disco movies.

"Yes."

It was a job offer to be the manager of a club that specializes in the catering to a male clientele. The women would all be beautiful, and all would be accessible to the manager. And, of course, the position would pay oodles of money. Perfect job for a man whose online history mainly involved sites that included three X's in the names.

"Very generous offer," Miroku said as he watched Naraku circling him from the outside of the barrier he had erected. "You'll forgive me if I don't entirely trust you."

Naraku laughed. "Of course you don't. Why should you?"

"Er…" Miroku wondered if the villain had lost his marbles. Wouldn't it make more sense to keep trying to persuade him instead of feeding his distrust?

"You don't know me. You don't even know these people that you are playing hero with. Once this game is finished, however, you will be back out there in the real world. With real bills to pay. Student loans don't pay themselves, you know. And someone who never graduated college will have a very difficult time finding a job to support themselves. How long do you think you will be able to support yourself tending bar at a seedy strip joint? Think of what is best for you." Naraku leaned closer. "This is just a game to them. You are just a name on a screen. Not a real friend. When this is over, they will forget about you."

Miroku frowned. "I don't believe that."

"Kagome and Inuyasha will go off together, get married, have a dozen or so children. They will not be able to fit you into their lives. Shippo will be working hard getting so many degrees that he will have no time for you. And Sango. Sango is dangerously close to being the weight that drags you down and drowns you. You can not tie yourself down to one woman, Miroku. You are too young. Too virile. Your life may as well be over if you become too involved with her. You're not ready."

Miroku watched Naraku as he continued to circle him.

"You need to live! I can make your every dream come true. Only I have the power to help you."

"You do?"

"I do."

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"I don't need your stupid magic!" yelled the dog demon as he took a swipe at the man in the baboon pelt.

Naraku chuckled. "Of course you don't. You are strong. You are fast. You are impossible to defeat." His voice dropped a level, "At least, while you are here." He dodged another attack. "While you are in the jewel you have the power of a demon. But out there… out in the real world… how much power do you have?"

"I have enough," Inuyasha growled.

"Do you?"

"Yes."

"Do you think that you have enough power to protect the woman you love? There are others out there who are stronger than you. More powerful than you. Others who would do anything to take her away from you."

"You don't know Kagome if you think that would happen."

Naraku laughed. "I did not say that the little miko would leave you voluntarily." Inuyasha growled his response. "But I know of a way that you could keep her safe."

Growl.

"You like this world, don't you? You are strong here. You can spend your days fighting and your nights under the stars with Kagome. You never grow old here, you never grow weak or tired. There is no sickness. And you would never have to share Kagome with anyone ever again."

Inuyasha kept his grip on his sword, but the tip lowered slowly to the ground. "What are you talking about?"

"I am saying that you, Inuyasha Ryoku, can live within the jewel with Kagome for all time. You could spend many lifetimes with her. You can stay a demon forever."

"You can't do that… can you?"

"I can. With enough power I can do anything."

"Why would you do that for me?" he asked suspiciously.

Naraku smiled. "Oh, I would not be doing it for you, demon. I would be doing it for myself. Having you here instead of in the real world saves me a lot of headaches. And I would be assured that Kagome is safe. I can't have her hurt or killed. I need her safe and sound. And I know that she would be safe with you." He paused for a moment. "Can I entrust her safety to you?"

"I will protect Kagome with my life."

"Good," Naraku purred.

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"Poor little miko," Naraku made a sad tsking sound, "All alone."

"I'm not alone."

Ok, so what if her friends seemed to be frozen, technically she wasn't alone. They were here, they just weren't… here… Of course she was frozen as well, but at least her mind seemed to be alert. The others were in some kind of trance.

"They have abandoned you," he stepped closer, setting off her personal space radar.

"No. That's a lie."

"Yessss, little girl. They have left you alone."

"They wouldn't do that." She would have shook her head, but so far the only thing she had been able to move was her fingertips of her left hand. She kept herself from looking at her friends. They were as still as statues and it made her feel uneasy to see them. Their eyes just seemed so dead. Even the voices in her head had grown quiet.

"You have too much faith in them." He ran the back of his hand down her face, causing her to shiver in revulsion.

Wait. Shivers were good. That meant she could move!

"They'll get past your traps," she said confidently as she worked on moving her right foot. She could feel the spell on her melting away. It was almost as if it had been waiting for her to realize that she COULD do it. She held herself as still as possible. If the others were caught in a trap she would be on her own, and she would need every edge she could get.

"They are not traps." He leaned close enough that his breath brushed her ear. It took all of her self control not to cringe away. "I am offering them their hearts desires. I am giving them everything they have ever dreamed of. What is that compared to you?" He stepped back and frowned at her. "What are your desires, Kagome Higurashi?"

"To see you dead."

Naraku laughed as if she had told the funniest joke he had ever heard. "My death is one wish I will not grant you." He smiled at her in what was probably supposed to be a warm manner. "Tell me what you desire. Let me grant your wish."

Kagome was about to reiterate the fact that she wanted him dead, when it dawned on her. "You can't read me." She laughed. "You can't read what I want and it's driving you insane! Insane-er."

When she looked up again she saw him looking at her in horror. That was when she realized that she had moved while laughing. Quickly she grabbed an arrow from her quiver and took aim. Looks like her surprise attack was even a surprise to her. Naraku had been so shocked that he hadn't moved a muscle. The arrow struck his shoulder, lodging deep.

Cursing herself for her stupidity, Kagome grabbed another arrow. This time she concentrated on filling it with purifying energy. Unfortunately this gave the wounded monster enough time to retaliate. Just as the arrow began to glow, Kagome was knocked off of her feet by a slimy tentacle. The bow was knocked from her hand and her arrows scattered around the room.

"You drew first blood. Congratulations, miko."

Scrambling to her feet, Kagome dove for her bow. Once again a tentacle slammed into her. This time it knocked her into the wall. Rolling to the side she dodged the next blow. Before the next one could come, she was on her feet and racing towards her bow. Another tentacle shot in front of her path. For a moment she was afraid that she was going to trip over it, but she managed to jump it in time.

"Looking for this?" asked Naraku as one of the tentacles picked up her bow.

Kagome gasped as he crushed her weapon. It was nothing but splinters and string as it fell to the ground. She dropped beside it, not trusting herself to touch it without bursting into tears.

"Alone and weaponless. Poor helpless miko." One of the tentacles that was attached to his body wrapped around her stomach and lifted her off of the ground until she was at eye level with him. "You have no one to help you now."

"She has ME."

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Author's Notes:

Please don't send hate mail about this chapter until after you read the next one.


	34. It Ends Now

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Thirty-Four: It Ends Now

"She has ME."

Slightly startled, Kagome looked down to see that Sango had awoken from her trance. The demon exterminator looked mightily ticked off. Were those flames shooting out of her eyes?

"Impossible!" exclaimed Naraku, who sounded as stunned as he looked.

"No, what's impossible is that you thought that stupid trick would work."

"What did he do?" asked Kagome, as if she wasn't dangling high off the ground with a tentacle wrapped around her waist.

Sango changed her grip on her boomerang and gave Kagome her answer with o voice laced in venom. "He questioned my femininity."

"No!"

"Yeah. Can you believe he thought he could make me so insecure that I would actually ditch you so he could make me into a REAL woman?"

"What an idiot!"

"As if conforming to society's popular opinion of what a woman should be like was my big deep desire or something." She huffed.

"You're perfect the way you are, Sango."

"Thank you, Kagome."

"IF you ladies are QUITE finished with your pep talk," Naraku snarled as he tightened his grip on Kagome, "It is time to die."

Another tentacle shot out towards Sango. With an agile leap she dodged it. Once she landed she threw the boomerang, slicing the tentacle off. Unfortunately, during mid-throw, yet another tentacle shot out and knocked her into the wall. The bone boomerang landed several yards from where she landed.

"Oof!" The breath was knocked out of her, but she managed to remain on her feet.

With another tentacle whizzing in her direction, Sango knew that there wasn't time to retrieve her main weapon, so she drew her sword. And although she had the skills to use her sword, it wasn't her preferred way to fight. It was much more comfortable using the boomerang. Suddenly she was wishing she had done a little more diverse training so that she wasn't quite so reliant on one weapon. Although she wasn't able to cut this one in half, she was able to damage it. With her focus on what she was hacking at, she didn't notice the one coming up from behind her until it had cut straight through her shoulder. Though this one seemed more of a large thorn than the fleshy tentacles that Sango had been battling. Another one barreled into her, knocking her to the floor. Again.

"You can not hope to defeat me. I am far too powerful for two pathetic children."

"Wow, I knew you were stupid, but I thought for sure you could count higher than two."

"Miroku!" Kagome squealed with delight. She would have clapped her hands in joy if her arms hadn't been trapped at her side. "You're free!"

"Yeah." He glanced at Kagome with a smile before turning to Sango, who was back on her feet and reaching for her bone boomerang. "You okay?"

Wiping a smear of blood from her lip and her left arm hanging limply, Sango grinned. "Yeah." She gripped her weapon. "Glad you decided to join the party."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Instead of looking threatened, or even worried, Naraku smiled. "Two or three, it makes no difference. You can not defeat me." That was his only warning before he pulled forth an object that looked suspiciously like a large hornet's nest. The air around him seemed to move as he began a quiet chant.

"What did he promise you?" asked Sango as threw her boomerang. She didn't know what he was holding, but it didn't bode well for the good guys. Hopefully she could destroy it before he could do whatever it was he planned on doing with it.

"He offered me a job."

"A job?" The boomerang missed its mark. It was blocked by a tentacle and was making its way back to her.

"Sango…" Miroku thought about the things that Naraku had promised him. There was only one woman he wanted, and she wasn't someone who could be given away like a set of golf clubs. If he was to win her heart, he would do it on her own. "I just wanted to tell you that I like you just the way you are. Violent temper and all."

She couldn't stop the silly grin on her face. Even when the giant insects started swarming from the papery nest that Naraku was holding she felt a joy in her heart. Miroku grinned back at her as he pulled out a paper scroll and chanted quickly, throwing up a barrier before the insects reached them. They bounced off the barrier and buzzed angrily before them.

"Pathetic," laughed Naraku. He brought Kagome closer to his face. "Your friends can not save you, my dear."

"We aren't finished yet," Kagome growled, releasing the teeth she had tried sinking into the appendage holding her hostage. It tasted as nasty as it looked, and she was feeling a little queasy. She spat a few times to get rid of the taste. Gnawing her way to freedom perhaps wasn't her brightest of moves, but it wasn't like she had a bunch of options to choose from.

Again he laughed. "You have too much faith in your friends." He smiled at her. "Ah, you still have hopes that the two demons will awaken and come to your rescue. It will not happen."

Kagome stared him straight in the eye. "Then you don't know them very well."

"Do not make the mistake of thinking that because the two humans escaped that the demons will as well. Sango and Miroku have such little dreams. The two demons have dreams so big that they would give up all else for. I am giving them things that can not be attained in the real world. Dreams only I can make come true for them. Face it, little miko, you have lost. You will be mine."

Kagome glared at him. Kicking and biting didn't even seem to register with him. His grip was so tight that it was all she could do to stay conscious, much less trying to summon her powers. She looked down where her friends were.

They would not lose.

But it would be awfully nice if they could hurry before she asphyxiated.

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"We can't hide here forever!"

"I can't use the wind tunnel on him until Kagome is free." He looked around at the insects ramming themselves against the barrier. "And these things are poisonous, if they are like the ones we battled before. What we need is a plan."

"I need you to open up the barrier."

"That's not a plan, my dear Sango."

She gave him a heart stopping smile. "Sure it is."

For a moment it looked like Miroku was going to argue, but instead he gave a sharp nod. He took a deep breath, then let the barrier fall. Immediately he began swinging his staff to clear the way for Sango.

With her weapon ready, she began running at full speed towards Naraku, ignoring her throbbing shoulder. With a short hop she quickly swung around, releasing the boomerang. For a moment she wondered if she should consider training for discus throwing contest. That throw was certainly hard enough to get her into the Olympics. Sango was disappointed as the boomerang began flying back to her. Although she still managed to take a chunk out of her enemy, he managed to move the appendage that was holding Kagome hostage before it was severed.

"Game time is over, children."

Suddenly the room was filled with a green toxic smoke. Sango and Miroku began coughing and wheezing. Temporarily blinded, they didn't dare strike, for fear of hitting their friends. Too bad Naraku didn't have the same limitations. A barrage of strikes soon had Sango and Miroku on the floor and bleeding. And coughing as the poison began to fill their lungs.

"Weak humans. You do not stand a chance against me."

"Well," came another voice, "I guess it's a good thing we aren't all human, huh?" There was a slight pause. "FOXFIRE!"

Foxfire swirled around the room, pushing the toxic cloud away.

"Kagome! Miroku and Sango need antidotes! Quick!"

The miko struggled against Naraku's grip. "I can't get loose!"

"Use your bow or something!"

"He crushed my bow!"

Shippo gasped in horror. "No way! Do you know how many battles we had to fight so you could upgrade that stupid thing?"

"Yeah, I was there, Shippo."

"SILENCE!" bellowed Naraku. "Do you intend to defeat me by boring me to death with your inane chatter?"

"Do you think that would work?" wondered Kagome aloud.

Not one known for his sense of humor, Naraku punished the miko for her remark by tightening his grip once more. This time she heard bones crack. Her bones. Her ribs, specifically. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of hearing her cry, but she couldn't help the scream of pain.

"I give you one last chance, Shippo. Back away and I will still fulfill your dreams."

"I love Kagome, she is my friend. Her happiness means more to me than anything. I cherish her friendship, and I refuse to trade that in for anything." He seemed to grow a few inches as he spoke. His normally bright green eyes were dark with resolve.

Naraku was enraged by his failure to lure the kit away. With a scream he began to glow. Suddenly there were demons coming from his robes, as if they were parts of him that he was setting free. There were dozens of them. Then hundreds. They were small and large and fast and slow. All of them looked dangerous, if not completely disgusting.

"No," whispered Sango as she helped Miroku stand. "Oh please, no…"

The room was filling with demons. They were crawling on the floor and walls. The three friends stood close together, determined that they would go down fighting.

Sango looked over to where Inuyasha was standing silently. She wondered what dream had been given to him. For a moment she was envious of him. Safe in his dream world he would not know the horrors that were about to befall them all. Miroku gently wiped the tear from her cheek that she didn't know was there. Of course there was the disturbing possibility that it was demon slobber… She preferred to think it was a tear. Another drop landed on her cheek, she looked up to see a slimy demon that looked like a slug crawling on the ceiling. Blast… it WAS demon slobber.

"INUYASHA!" screamed Kagome as Naraku pulled her closer, wrapping her up tighter until it looked like she was encased by a cocoon of something that resembled a large sinewy snake.

Sadly, Sango looked over to where Inuyasha was standing. She blinked twice. Evidently 'was' was the key word. Past tense. Because the spot he was standing was suddenly empty. Turning her head so quick she was running the risk of whiplash she looked back at Kagome. She was falling to the ground. The tentacle had been ripped in half. A blur of red and silver snatched the girl in mid-fall.

"It's about time you woke up!" yelled Shippo.

"You and your dramatic entrances," chuckled Miroku as he threw several charms designed to stun a demon long enough to be cut in half. Sango took care of that part.

"Get up a barrier!" yelled Inuyasha as he flew behind them with Kagome cradled in his arms carefully. "NOW!"

Miroku quickly put up a barrier. Sango and Shippo both took the time out from battle to catch their breath. All at once they began asking Inuyasha about what had taken him so long and what his dream had been about. Even Miroku expressed curiosity about the dream as he concentrated on the barrier.

Ignoring his friends, Inuyasha knelt beside the barely breathing miko.

"Kagome…"

Her eyes fluttered before opening. "Remind me to yell at you later for taking so long," she whispered.

"I'll make it up to you later." He rested his forehead against hers.

"You are a FOOL!" yelled Naraku.

"Keh. I don't need what you're offering. I have all the strength I need." He proceeded to offer some creative, if not improbable, suggestions of where the offer could be shoved. He didn't bother making any comments about his offers regarding Kagome though, losing her simply wasn't an option.

Kagome struggled to sit up. She looked around the room. Beyond Miroku's barrier there was a swarm of demons just chomping at the bit to sink their teeth and claws into them. Hundreds of demons versus the five of them.

"I'll take the hundred on the left," she mumbled, "You take the two hundred on the right." Then she spied Sango's shoulder.

Pain forgotten, she quickly jumped up and found her backpack. She wondered if it was somehow magically tied to her. It always seemed to be around just when she needed it. She pulled out the vials to combat the poison they were exposed to earlier. She drank one and gave Miroku and Sango each one. Then she concentrated her healing powers on Sango's shoulder. Her body glowed and grew warm as the power coursed through her. Once the demon slayer was healed she concentrated on healing herself. Broken ribs hurt like the devil.

"Keep Kagome behind the barrier," ordered Inuyasha. "Let us out then put it back up."

"No."

Inuyasha glared at the miko. "Don't be an idiot. We have to keep you alive; you're the only one who can heal us. You are the only one who can bring us back if we fall."

Kagome stood with her hands on her hips. With her chin held high she looked him stubbornly in the eye. "You need him to fight. I'll make my own barrier." She shook her finger at him. "And don't call me an idiot!"

Almost as soon as Inuyasha nodded his agreement, the barrier dropped. Inuyasha's sword slashed through the enemies like a hot knife through warm butter. Sango's boomerang cut down dozens of demons in one throw. Miroku used his wind tunnel on the demons, making sure to steer clear of the poisonous insects. Shippo transformed leaves into over twenty identical Shippo's, confusing the enemy, causing them into attack and destroy each other. There might have been hundreds of demons, but luckily they seemed to all be rather stupid demons.

Kagome hated watching the fight from a distance. She spent a good deal of the battle running from one friend to the other, healing wounds and filling them with energy before ducking behind another one of her barriers. But the hordes of demons seemed to be unending. Finally she allowed herself to look at Naraku. What she saw made her smile an almost evil smile. With so much of his energy expended towards making the demons, Naraku himself was left weakened.

Naraku's eyes met hers, and he knew that she knew.

"Form a barrier around the room!" yelled Kagome the moment she saw that he was about to withdraw from battle.

She was glad that Miroku didn't question her, simply stopped his own battle and began chanting. Sango appeared in front of him to protect him almost the second he stopped fighting. As she moved towards her friends, Kagome's foot hit against one of her arrows. She bent down and picked it up.

The power inside of her began to flare when she touched her weapon. She tightened her grip on the arrow and let the power flow through the wood and the metal arrowhead.

"I need my bow."

Shippo appeared at her side. "I can help you with that." He put a transforming leaf on his head and disappeared into a puff of smoke.

Kagome waved away the smoke and looked down at her feet where Shippo had stood only moments before. Instead of a fox kit there was a weird little shaped curled up piece of wood.

"Shippo?"

"Hurry up!"

"Are… what are you? A snail?

"I'm a bow!" the kit grumbled.

Unconvinced, but hopeful, Kagome picked Shippo up. Sure it was an unconventional bow, but she was fairly certain it would work. She smiled as she encouraged the power to flow out of her and into the arrow. The smile was turned onto Naraku as she aimed at his heart.

"It ends now!"

The arrow flew through the air, cutting a path through the demons, dissolving any within two yards of it. Naraku turned to flee, but was not fast enough. The arrow struck his chest, eating away at half of his body. He screamed in rage as his body continued to disintegrate quickly.

One by one the other demons began to fall. They were all dead by the time Naraku finished turning into a pile of dust.

The bloody and exhausted group stood in the middle of the room. Shippo transformed back into himself and sat down where he was standing before letting himself drop back and lay on the floor, too tired to worry about laying in demon guts. Sango dropped her boomerang on the floor and sat wearily on it, Miroku sitting beside her. Kagome dropped to her knees and tried to catch her breath. Inuyasha crossed his arms and leaned against the wall.

"You couldn't have done that half an hour ago?" complained Inuyasha.

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Authors Note:

One more chapter to go folks! Thanks to Shoomy2003 for proof reading so you don't have to read through a bunch of typos or oddly worded paragraphs. :o)


	35. Happy Endings

Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story belongs to me.

Chapter Thirty-Five: Happy Endings?

"Now what?"

Kagome shrugged at Inuyasha's question. "I dunno."

"We could stay here and fight some more battles," suggested Shippo.

"I just want to go home and eat about a dozen cheeseburgers. Maybe gorge myself on a bit of chocolate."

"Mmm… that sounds good, Sango." The miko could do without the cheeseburgers, but the chocolate sounded absolutely divine.

"I want to go home and…"

"No one wants to know what you want to do, Miroku," interrupted the dog demon.

The monk did his best to look offended. "I was just going to say that I would like a nice long nap."

"Uh huh."

"Oh shut up." Playfully, Miroku conked Inuyasha over the head with his staff. Satisfied with seeing a couple of nice lumps form between the fuzzy silver ears, the monk turned to Kagome. "Okay, take us home."

For a couple of minutes Kagome closed her eyes. But when she opened them she found that they were still sitting in the middle of a pile of demon guts. She tried again, concentrating harder this time. Growling she stood up and gave a dismembered arm, or was it a leg, a sharp kick before concentrating again.

"Can't you hurry it up?"

When Kagome opened her eyes to glare at the dog demon they were glowing pink. "It's not like I can just click my heels together three times and wish us home."

"How did you do it last time?"

"I'm not really sure, Sango." Kagome thought about it. "Well… I remember picturing Inuyasha and a door." She blushed. "I think Inuyasha was my anchor, and the door was the way through."

"Ah," said the monk, "And now it won't work since Inuyasha is on this side with you."

Kagome sighed heavily. "Right."

Shippo chuckled evilly. "Well… I guess that means you have to picture Kouga this time since he's the only one on the other side."

The miko brightened, but the dog demon's face darkened.

"Great idea, Shippo!"

"No."

"I'll just picture Kouga."

"No!"

"And connect with him."

"NO!"

Miroku put a hand on Inuyasha's shoulder. "Would you rather us all be trapped here?"

The dog demon shrugged.

"I'm NOT giving up CHEESEBURGERS and CHOCOLATE!" yelled Sango in her most menacing tone. "So just LET HER CONNECT!

He didn't want to resort to pleading, but felt he might have no choice. Turning back to Kagome he noticed her studying him closely, trying to figure out what it was that he wasn't saying. He wanted her to know that he couldn't stand the thought of her having that connection with someone else. The others didn't know how… how intimate it was to be the one she was connecting with. For those few moments they were connected, heart and soul. It would kill him if she did that with anyone else.

Two seconds later he could tell by her eyes that she had understood what he was trying to tell her. But that sudden wicked gleam in her eyes made him a little nervous.

"Okay everyone, get ready to go home."

The others looked momentarily surprised, but quickly went back into a circle formation and held hands. With drooping ears and downcast eyes, Inuyasha squeezed Kagome's hand and looked at her, his golden eyes pleading.

"Please don't do this, Kagome."

"Your mind may be in this world," she whispered so that only he could hear, "But your body is in that one." She gave him a flirtatious wink. "I'll just have to connect with your body this time."

Inuyasha's jaw dropped open. He was pretty sure he wanted to say something, but couldn't remember what it was for the life of him. Heck, at that moment he couldn't even remember his own name. And that searing look that Kagome just gave him robbed him of any sense he had left.

"We should come back," said Shippo as he grabbed onto Sango and Kagome's hands. "This would be the coolest virtual reality game EVER!"

"We'll see," said the miko before she closed her eyes.

Blanking her mind of everything else, Kagome concentrated on her bedroom door, just like she did when she brought the others back into the real world the last time. It was their gate, their doorway, from one world to the other. She pictured it clearly in her mind, down to the very last detail, including the bottom right edge that her cat had scratched up. Then she concentrated on picturing Inuyasha just the way he was when they left on the journey. She pictured his body. Felt his warmth. Eventually she could feel his heartbeat.

Slowly she placed her hand on the door, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that on the other side was Inuyasha. She turned the knob and pushed.

Shippo was the first through the door. Sango was next, though Miroku refused to let go of her hand, so he followed next. Inuyasha tightened his grip on Kagome's hand. They would go through side by side.

"Ayame. Baby. Sweetie-Pie. Of course I didn't forget our anniversary. You know you mean the world to me. The florist must have lost my order. Don't worry, baby. I'll make sure that they get a piece of my mind. I'd never forget the anniversary of our first… uh… of our first…. Umm… the first time we… uh…. No no no! Of course I know what it was the first anniversary of. It's just that the guys are here and I… No baby! Of course I'm not ashamed of our relationship!"

Defeating Naraku had been draining. Painful and tiring and exhausting. But watching Kouga flailing over the phone was highly entertaining, and none of them wanted to interrupt the fun as they slowly woke up.

"It's just that what I sent you is supposed to be a surprise and I just know that one of these idiots would find out some way to ruin it for you. Um… yeah… I knew that… Okay, they don't actually KNOW you, but some of them are hackers and would think nothing into hacking into my database to find out personal information about my life and ruin one of the most special celebrations of our lives. Of course I'm not lying! Yes… it's VERY special." There was a slight pause in the conversation before his voice became slightly hysterical. "MARRIAGE? I didn't say anything about MARRIAGE! I just said SPECIAL!"

"Congratulations," smirked Inuyasha as he clapped a startled Kouga on the shoulder. Then he said it louder into the receiver. "CONGRATULATIONS, AYAME!"

Once Kouga got his heart rate back under control, he stammered a quick goodbye to Ayame and hung up the phone.

"Welcome back." He looked at Kagome, then at the phone. "That was my… a friend. Acquaintance really."

"Sounded like a fiancée to me," said Shippo as he sat up and stretched.

"No! Just some girl I went to school with."

"And got engaged to," smiled Sango. After a brief yawn she leapt to her feet and raced across the room. Miroku wasn't fast enough to catch her before she slammed the bathroom door shut.

"NO FAIR!" he hollered through the door. He rattled the knob, but it was locked up tight. "Why do women always get the bathroom first?"

"BECAUSE YOU MEN ARE TOO SLOW!" yelled Sango from the other side of the door.

"She's not really my fiancée…"

"Really… I don't care, Kouga. The only thing I care about at this very moment is for a very large dose of ibuprophen." She had forgotten how badly her body was hurting in the real world. Whatever pain relievers she had taken before she left had worn off. She turned to ask Inuyasha to find her some pills, but he was already hunting for them.

"We're just really good friends. She's a confused girl. A stalker of sorts."

"So, you're really good friends with a stalker?" Miroku laughed as he leaned against the bathroom door. "How interesting."

Kagome was sure that Kouga was saying something else, but she had already tuned him out. Instead, she was focusing on the object lying in her palm. It was the jewel. The whole jewel.

"Kikyo?" she whispered. The other priestess must have given her the rest of the jewel. But when? And why? She looked around the room, but there wasn't any sign that she had been in the room. Surely it would have been something that Kouga would have mentioned to her. "Midoriko?"

"You did well, my child." It was Midoriko's voice. A quick glance at her friends let her know that she was the only one who could hear the other woman.

"Thank you."

"The jewel is now yours to protect."

"What happened to Kikyo?" From across the room Inuyasha was watching her carefully. He held a bottle of pills and had picked up a glass to fill with water. She smiled at him, then looked towards the sink. He got the message and went to fill up the glass.

"She has given you the rest of the jewel. Keep it safe."

"But is she okay? And is Naraku really dead?"

Kagome couldn't see Midoriko, but she could tell that the woman was smiling. "Yes, Naraku is really dead. His body will be found shortly as the cleaning crew comes into the laboratory. Doctors will find that his heart simply quit beating."

"And Kikyo?" She felt Inuyasha place a cool glass in her hand. His hand moved to her forehead, checking for a fever. He was saying something, but she couldn't hear him.

"Kikyo wanders."

"Wanders?"

"Her spirit did not want to move on. So she wanders about this world in a body she fashioned from bones and clay."

Kagome tried not to make a face at the image in her mind. "Is she alive?"

"Not alive, yet not quite dead. You can find her, if you wish it. You can help her to pass on into the next life."

Taking the pills from Inuyasha's hand she swallowed them. She thought about Kikyo, and the life she had led. She thought about how lonely the priestess had been. Being in a body of bones and clay may not be much of a life, but at least it was a life. Sort of. Maybe, just maybe, the priestess might find a little happiness this time around.

"No. I'll help her pass on if she wants me to, but I think that for now we should just let her be."

Once more she felt Midoriko's warmth as she smiled.

"What do I do with the jewel?" Kagome looked down at the glowing jewel. "Besides protect it."

Midoriko just smiled, then faded from the young miko's mind.

"KAGOMEEEE!"

Wincing, Kagome turned around and glared at the former dog demon. "You don't have to yell, Inuyasha. I'm two inches away from you!"

The human was growling at her. "I've been calling your name for TEN MINUTES! I thought… you… you just kept moving your mouth like you were trying to talk… nothing was coming out… I thought you… we thought…" His tirade was cut short when a hand landed gently on his knee.

"I'm sorry I worried you."

He lowered his forehead to hers and took a couple of deep, calming breaths. "Keh. Who said I was worried, wench?"

"So," says Shippo, "Anyone want to play a game?"

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

NARAKU ONIGUMO

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

MAY HIS SOUL REST IN PEACE

A lone figure stood by the grave, quietly reading the epitaph etched in the headstone. After a moment the woman stepped back and reached into the bag she was carrying. She pulled out the traditional priestess clothing that she had been forced to wear for nearly her entire life. Of course they weren't the originals, those had probably turned to dust many years ago. No, these were simply meant to be symbolic.

She placed the neatly folded robes beside the headstone, hiding the last sentence of the epitaph. Yes, he was gone and would never be forgotten. Personally she hoped that his soul would be in eternal torment, but she doubted that the engravers would have put that on the stone.

Kikyo turned her back on the grave and turned her face up to the sun. For the first time that she could remember, she felt joy. Real joy.

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

_Houshi4Hentai: Kagome is dead._

_DemonSlayer18: again?_

_DogDemon01: KAGOME!_

_MikoMaiden: What? _

_FoxFyre: she can defeat naraku, but can't navigate one little pit of doom without falling in?_

_BigBadWolf: cut Kagome some slack there, runt._

_DogDemon01: hey kouga, how's AYAME? how are the wedding plans going?_

_FoxFyre: where's my invitation?_

_DemonSlayer18: you can come with me, shippo. after all, ayame asked me to be in the wedding._

_BigBadWolf: THERE IS NO WEDDING!_

_Houshi4Hentai: That's not what my invitation says._

_MikoMaiden: I just got my invitation yesterday. Congratulations Kouga! _

Kagome sat back and grinned as her friends chatted back and forth about the wedding next month that Kouga still refused to acknowledge. Two weeks after they got back to the real world after defeating Naraku as the first time Kagome met Ayame. At first the red-head hated her guts. But after they hung around together for a few days, the other woman realized she had nothing to fear from Kagome. Part was because of how she didn't treat Kouga as anything other than a friend. But the biggest part was because of how she seemed glued to Inuyasha. Kouga still claimed Kagome as his own, so Shippo suggested couple's counseling.

The jewel twinkled at her from the chain around her neck. She picked it up and looked at it. Sometimes it seemed like she could hear Midoriko's voice coming from the jewel. Midoriko was the only soul, besides Kikyo, who did not choose to move on. Midoriko stayed within the jewel, and no one was sure where Kikyo was. Kagome smiled, it sure was nice not hearing all those voices in her head. It was a little disconcerting. Of course, the voices were a lot of fun for weirding out the boys.

Looking at the calendar, she realized that they had been apart for nearly a month now. Each had gone back to their own lives. They still kept in touch through emails and IM's, but it wasn't quite the same. Shippo and Inuyasha were both in college. Kouga and Ayame were busy preparing for the wedding, regardless of what Kouga claimed.

Miroku, however, had decided after two days of separation from Sango that it was time to make a life change. He quit his job and moved. Sango had been surprised to find him standing on her doorstep, asking if there were any available apartments in her complex and where the best place to get cheeseburgers was. Kagome smiled as she recalled the phone call she got from Sango… three days after he showed up. She was sure that their own invitations were probably on the way to the engravers.

_DING!_

_IM: DogDemon01: You're awfully quiet tonight._

_IM: MikoMaiden: I miss you._

_IM: DogDemon01: I miss you too. It is actually painful not having you around._

_IM: MikoMaiden: Have you turned into a demon lately?_

_IM: DogDemon01: Nah, that only happens when you are with me. You have to hurry and get your paperwork finished so you can get over here for classes. I miss my ears and fangs._

_IM: MikoMaiden: lol I miss them too. But I like your human ears. And eyes. And teeth._

_IM: DogDemon01: Keep going._

_IM: MikoMaiden:oP Vain puppy._

_IM: DogDemon01: Did I tell you that the dorms are going co-ed?_

_IM: MikoMaiden: Really? Maybe we can get into the same dorm._

There was a pause. A long pause. Kagome stared at the IM box, wondering if he had gone to go get a snack or something. Finally he wrote back.

_IM: DogDemon01: Or we could get an off campus apartment._

Oh my.

_IM: MikoMaiden: Are you asking me to… cohabitate with you?_

_IM: DogDemon01: Does that mean marry?_

OH MY! Kagome's fingers trembled. Eventually she got them to work correctly again and she typed.

_IM: MikoMaiden: Are you asking me to marry you?_

Pause.

_IM: DogDemon01: If I was, what would you say?_

_IM: DogDemon01: Never mind, don't answer that. Not yet. Let's talk during Spring Break. I rounded up enough money to come visit. If you still want me to._

_IM: MikoMaiden: I still want you._

_IM: DogDemon01: I'll see you then._

_IM: DogDemon01: Sweet dreams, Kagome._

_IM: MikoMaiden: Sweet dreams, Inuyasha._

_IM: MikoMaiden: Hey, Inuyasha?_

_IM: DogDemon01: Yeah?_

Kagome grinned and typed in three letters that would forever change her life. Then she clicked on the SEND button.

_IM: MikoMaiden: YES_

ooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOooOOoo

Author's Notes:

I want to thank everyone for your reviews and for sticking the story out to the end. I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks again to Shoomy2003 for proofing for me. I'll be starting a new story soon, hope you guys check it out.

Thanks again for your wonderful reviews, constructive criticism help make the stories better. :o)


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